Fast and Fiery
by darkfire1220
Summary: Natsu Dragneel is an ex-street racer who has ditched the U.S. after a disastrous accident two years prior. Now he's forced back into the underworld of L.A. by former friend and undercover agent Erza, who needs him to drive with Lucy Heartfilia so they can bust a notorious gang. In exchange, Natsu's name will be cleared of all charges, but the danger may be more than it's worth...
1. Strong-Armed

**Okay, I've been getting request after request for me to do stories with NaLu, so for those of you who wanted it, here it is! This story is just a prototype for now, as I'm still working out the kinks of it, but first some stuff to clear up:**

**This is a street racing story, but it will not be mimicking ANYTHING of Wild Rhov's ****_Wheels of Fire, _****which I can honestly say, I have never read despite my great admiration for her other stories. This is set in OUR world, so no Edolas, dragons(*sad face*), or magic, but yes, there will be lots of fire :) **

**Again, this is just an experiment and it is subject to change, so I might go back now and then to add stuff to the early chapters until I solidify the plot I have in mind. **

**As always, please review and tell me what you think of this idea! And also, thanks for reading!**

_Chapter 1: Strong-Armed_

_Speed. It just wasn't enough for him. He had to go faster, faster, until the world around him was a blur. The speedometer had passed 100mph a moment ago, but he just accelerated faster. _

_ He swerved the car, shifting the gears at a tight turn to drift, then shifted back and floored the gas. The car's front end lifted slightly at the forces, but he just laughed crazily and kept going. This was his life. His dream._

_ His nightmare._

_ Suddenly, there was a flashing light, then something crashed into the side of his car, sending the vehicle flipping sideways. It hit the side of a building and came to a stop, creaking from damage that couldn't be fixed._

_ He climbed out of the car, bleeding from scratches and stunned by the impact, but he saw a massive crash where the other car had hit him. It was lying upside down with a huge dent in the side. He could see someone lying unconscious in the devastated vehicle, unaware of the gasoline dripping by a spark-_

**_BANG!_**

Natsu sat up abruptly with a gasp, whipping his head back and forth while he panted rapidly, but the surroundings sunk in and he realized it had all been just a dream. The same dream that'd haunted him for two of his nineteen years of life.

Natsu lived in a favela at Guatemala City. A normal morning for him meant he hadn't been arrested, (Yet) hadn't gotten shot, (Yet) and hadn't found money he could use for food (Yet). Or gas, for that matter. But that was often irrelevant to him, especially considering his usual daily routine.

He sat up in the couch that had been his bed for nearly a year and groaned, rubbing his head to clear the sleep which fogged his mind. His stomach rumbled, reminding him that he hadn't eaten last night. Because he'd been busy avoiding the local gangs who were out looking for trouble. In fact, Natsu hadn't even taken off the jeans he'd worn the night before. He'd been too tired to bother.

Natsu got up and walked to the mini fridge he had, looking inside hopefully for something edible. Unfortunately, all he had was a near-empty carton of milk. He drank the carton dry, then tossed it in a trash can. Reaching into his pocket, the teen pulled out his wallet and looked it through. The money he had wouldn't get him much farther than breakfast, but it was something, at least.

The boy noted the photo he still kept in his wallet with a frown, and stuffed it back into his pocket. He threw on a t-shirt and walked out the front door, locking it behind him.

Parked in the street just outside his home was a 1980 Ford Ranger. The old truck was beat up and looked like it might fall apart at any moment, but it ran, so Natsu didn't complain. If there was anything to complain about, it was how he couldn't stick a decent job without getting tailed by the police. He'd had a shady past, sure, but that was in a whole other country.

Whatever happened to foreign hospitality? Oh yeah. Probably never existed in the first place. But then again, Natsu was a stranger for the most part to hospitality in general, so it wasn't a big deal for him.

He checked the gas in his truck and sighed when he noticed it was almost on empty. Natsu decided to just run to the market instead. Running was one of the things he did to keep in shape, and the weather was nice in the morning. The teen opened a compartment in the truck and pulled out a 9mm Glock 17, which he hid in his back pocket. Then he made for the market two miles away.

Natsu knew it was a great place to pickpocket unsuspecting tourists for cash, and an easy place to snag some breakfast.

What he didn't know was that he was being followed.

**/\/\/\/\/\**

The marketplace, as usual, was packed. Natsu eyed the place up as he finished his run, searching for a tourist or a drunk who was too busy to notice if he decided to "borrow" their money. Unfortunately, his favorite street for such things had cops looking for trouble. Trouble like him.

Natsu rolled his eyes in dislike and walked to the next street over, which had a cafe at the corner. That's where he found what he was looking for.

A female tourist was sitting alone at a table. How did he know she was a tourist? Because she was a red head and wore fancy sunglasses. He didn't know of any red heads this close to the favelas, not any who weren't foreigners. Even his spiky pink hair was dyed to be a darker brown so he was less conspicuous.

He watched as she put out a tip for the waiter, then walked out of the cafe. Natsu nonchalantly walked to the table and reached for the cash when no one was looking.

"That's not yours."

Natsu froze at the voice. Not because he'd been caught, but because he recognized the voice. He turned around slowly and found the red head right behind him. She took her sunglasses off, and Natsu knew immediately who she was by those piercing brown eyes.

"Erza." he sighed. "What are you doing here?"

"Why do you think I'm here?" she asked.

Natsu's hand trailed instinctively for the 9mm in his back pocket as he muttered. "You can't seriously be here to arrest me. I'm way out of your jurisdiction."

Erza shrugged. "Not at all. I don't want to arrest you, but if you don't listen to me, I might just drag you back to L.A. by force. You know I can. And Natsu?"

"What?"

"I emptied your handgun, so forget it." she said flatly.

Natsu swore and threw up his hands. "Dammit, Erza, do you know how hard it is to get ammo here? I have to scrap it out with the local thugs for every bullet I find."

"Not if you come back to the states with me."

"And why would I do that?"

Erza nodded towards a car parked by the cafe. "Let's take this conversation to your house. There're a few things I need to bring you up to speed on."

Natsu didn't see a way out, so he sighed and growled. "Oh, fine. But you're not putting me in handcuffs, Ms. Cop."

She smiled ruefully. "I'm not going to arrest you, Natsu. Try to relax."

"I'll relax when you're out of my hair." he muttered under his breath. Natsu followed her to the car and got in. Erza then drove them out of the marketplace and back towards the favelas.

**/\/\/\/\/\**

Natsu opened the door and let Erza follow him in. She looked around his home with a raised eyebrow. "Well, it's not that different from your house back in L.A. It could be worse, I suppose."

"Are you gonna tell me why you're here, or are you just gonna remind me how bad off I am?" he snapped.

Erza sighed. "I'm sorry…I…" She hugged the teenage boy tightly. "I'm not sure what to say. No one's seen you in two years…I trailed six other sources before I came here. Most of our friends back home think you're dead. It took forever to find out where you were hiding."

Natsu let her hug him, albeit reluctantly. He shrugged. "I'm right here. More importantly, why were you looking for me?"

"You're my friend! Of course I would go look for you!" Erza exclaimed as she sat down on the couch. "Well, that was what it was about at first. Siegrain sent me out this time."

"So he can throw me in a cell, no doubt." he grunted and also took a seat.

"No, actually that's not what he wants. He needs you back up in the states to drive."

Natsu stiffened. "No. Forget it."

"Just listen to me, okay?" Erza pleaded. "Look, we need you to help us out. If you drive for us, Sieg's going to clear your whole record and let you back into the states as a free man."

"Erza…" He shook his head. "No. Siegrain can't get me back into street racing with bribery. I gave up fast cars, you know that."

"What about the others back home? To them, it's like they lost two of the family at one time. Mira hasn't gotten back in a car after the accident. She blames herself for what happened, you know."

"Then she's being an idiot." he snarled. "It was my fault, not hers."

"It wasn't your fault, or Mira's." Erza murmured. "You know that. But you've been hiding from it for too long, Natsu. Look at yourself! I barely recognized you at all!"

Natsu snorted. "What gave me away?"

Erza smiled. "Your taste in cars."

He raised an eyebrow. "That beat up truck is not my style. I just have it because I need a ride sometimes."

"Oh, I don't mean that. I mean the one in your garage."

Natsu's shoulders sagged. "Seriously, Erza? I've been working on that for like a year."

"That Charger is no doubt where all your time and money goes. I know you built it from the ground up. I asked around, and no one's seen American Muscle like that roll on these streets." she chuckled with amusement. "What model year is it based on? 1960's?"

"70's." He corrected. "That little project just needs a decent engine, and she'll roll like she was made in the states."

"I'd be impressed if I got to see it drive, but unfortunately, we don't have the time for it. I can have it shipped back home, if you want." Erza offered.

"You're under the impression I'm going back to L.A." Natsu said slowly. "I'm not going back Erza. What do I even say to everyone at home? That I had to split right after that accident so I didn't get my ass thrown in prison? I thought I seemed like a real jerk, and I can imagine they thought the same."

Erza shook her head. "Natsu, no one thinks that. We just want you back home. And if you come with me, you can go back as a free man instead of a wanted fugitive."

He stared at her with disbelief. "Why does Siegrain want me? Aren't there other guys who can roll in L.A. for him? Or did he throw every street racer in prison already?"

"I asked him if you could be the driver." she said quietly.

"Erza, I busted up two cops and even set fire to one of the local police stations. You don't actually think Sieg's gonna let me go free, do you?" he asked scornfully.

"He gave me his word." Erza defended. "And the job we need you for is dangerous enough to make the crimes you committed look like minor offenses."

"His word, huh? If he told you that the Easter Bunny was real, would you believe him?"

"Enough with the sarcasm, Natsu." she sighed. "This job is seriously dangerous. Four of our best agents have already come back in body bags trying to pull it off. We need to hit this at a different angle, and the best option is street racing."

"So I go back and get thrown in prison, or I go back and get killed. Great." he said dryly.

"Please? Will you at least consider it?"

"_No. _For the last time, Erza, I can't go back."

"You can, but you won't!" Erza snapped and lost patience. "Are you too afraid to show your face? You weren't the only one who lost someone important two years ago! You can't be so naive that you'd refuse to at least try for a better life!"

Natsu said nothing and just glanced away.

Erza's mouth set in a line. She stood up abruptly and walked to the door. Before she opened it, Erza looked back at the teenage boy and murmured. "She'd want you to come back, Natsu."

"She's dead." he said coldly.

"Well, that's life. I know it's not fair, but be a man and deal with it." Erza said unsympathetically, then strode out through the door and slammed it behind her.

He sat on the couch for another five minutes, going through his conversation with Erza in his head.

_It was my fault she died, _he thought angrily. _Nothing will change that. But…_

Natsu pulled out his wallet and took out the small photo inside. The picture was of a slightly younger him, a pretty girl with short white hair, and a little, bluish-gray cat. They looked happy. And he could imagine what she'd have told him for what he'd said to Erza.

_Honestly, you're supposed to take care of your family, right? Such a child! _He could almost see the mischievous glint in her blue eyes.

Natsu sighed. "Alright, I got it."

**/**

He walked out front and realized that Erza was still sitting in her car outside his house. Natsu opened the door in the passenger side and climbed in. "You didn't leave."

"I thought you'd see things my way." Erza said lightly, appearing to be less angry than before. "I was willing to wait twenty minutes, but you didn't take as long as I thought. Maybe living here _has _made you smarter."

"_Estupido policia_. How's that for smart?" Natsu rolled his eyes. "So what's this job?"

She glanced at him. "You'll get the details when we meet with Sieg, but I'll tell you right now, that I hope you can still drive like you could two years ago. These guys you're up against play for keeps."

"I don't envy the unlucky bastard that gets in my way." he muttered.

Erza smiled and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "It's nice to see you haven't changed much, Natsu." With that, she started the car and made for the airport.

Natsu cracked his knuckles and grunted. "Oh, by the way, get somebody to pick up the Charger in my garage. I spent too much time and effort for that to just go back to scrap metal."

"Of course. In fact, it's already arranged." she said.

He shot her a look. "Erza, you haven't changed either."

"Whatever do you mean, Natsu?" Erza said innocently.

"Smartass." Natsu snickered.

To which Erza laughed.


	2. What You Owe

**New chapter! Note that this is my first M-Rated fic, so I'm might be a little shaky in transition from T to M, but we'll get to mature stuff in time, don't worry. Pairings have yet to be decided, although there will be NaLu, but I'm down for some others people might want. **

**Anyway, let me know what you think, and as always, please REVIEW and thanks for reading!**

_Chapter 2: What You Owe_

The first thing Erza made Natsu do once they were back in the States was take a shower.

"You've been living in a favela with gangsters for a year. God knows where else you were before that." Erza told him, "Clean up, or I'll throw you in a prison cell until you do."

"Bossy as usual I see." Natsu muttered, but complied.

They were at Erza's apartment, waiting for Sieg to show up and tell Natsu about the job he was going to work. Erza's place hadn't changed much since Natsu had last been there. It was very neat and looked like a normal girl's place at first glance, but if you went through any of the cabinets in her home, you'd find some kind of firearm or other weapon.

That was Erza's department. Weaponry. She was a scary person to piss off because of that.

Once Natsu cleaned up, he put on some clothes Erza had gotten ready for him. The teen came out in a plain black muscle shirt, white trousers, and some sneakers. His previously dyed brown hair had been washed out, showing the unusual salmon color that made him unique.

After getting dressed, Natsu made for Erza's front door. She frowned at him, "Where do you think you're going?"

He gave her a sideways look, "Kardia Cathedral."

Erza's mouth made a little, 'o' then it set in a line and she nodded, "Okay. I'll show you."

**/**

They took Erza's car to a small church on the edge of L.A., where Natsu found a grave and stood before it in silence for a while. His fists would clench now and then, as though he were picturing the night that changed his life.

Erza walked up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. Her voice was gentle, "She'd be proud of you for doing this."

"I haven't done anything yet." he muttered.

Erza let him be for a while, until she decided they couldn't stay anymore. She turned and walked back to the car, calling over her shoulder, "You can come back again later. We have to meet with Siegrain. He won't like it if we keep him waiting."

Natsu nodded, "Yeah. I'm coming."

He stared at the grave for a few more moments, then turned and followed Erza back to the car. He'd be back.

**/**

Siegrain was indeed waiting for them at Erza's house. He wore a standard black suit, had neat, dark blue hair, and had a red tattoo over his right eye.

The blue-haired man had an eyebrow raised as they walked up, "Where were you at? I told you not to leave the house until I briefed you."

"Natsu just wanted to pay a visit to the Cathedral." Erza told him.

Sieg frowned, then his expression cleared, "Ah…so, you finally decided to show up? Even I was at the funeral. We had our top agents staking it out in case you went. I was actually surprised you didn't show."

"Maybe I did and you just never saw me." Natsu muttered, then crossed his arms, "So, you gonna tell me why the hell you're dragging me back into this god-forsaken city?"

"Inside. I'll tell you there." Sieg told him.

**/**

They sat down around a table in Erza's living room, quiet until Sieg cleared his throat.

"Okay, down to business." Siegrain looked at Natsu as he spoke, "Our target is a crime organization that's been working L.A. to the bone for a few years now. It's a gang called Phantom Lord. Their leader, Jose, is one of the most dangerous people this city has ever known. Anyone who crosses him doesn't live to do it twice. Most of the people Jose run are small-timers, but there are five in particular that are considered as dangerous as him. Those would be the Element Four, his best drivers. But the one who stands as 2nd in terms of danger is a man called Black Steel."

Natsu's eyes narrowed, "Black Steel?"

"All we know about him is that he's a street racer Jose found someplace. He's brutal." Erza added.

Natsu was quiet for a bit, then glanced up at Siegrain, "Alright, so what am I doing? How does this work?"

"Jose runs the street races here. Your job is to enter and win. Work your way to the top, figure out how they click, then help us make the bust." Sieg finished.

Natsu mulled that over, then crossed his arms and leaned back on the couch, "Alright. What am I driving?"

"We have an impound lot where we keep cars we've taken in." Erza said, "I'll take you over so you can choose your ride."

"Jose's got a street race in two days." Sieg added, "Pick your car and get ready to drive. Remember, Dragneel, you're on a very short leash. The higher ups in our agency took a lot of convincing to try you out. I'm only doing this because I trust Erza. They're against it and my reputation is on the line if this goes south, understand? You owe us your very best, every skill you gained on these streets."

Natsu smirked, "So what are we wasting time here for?"

Erza rolled her eyes and smiled, "Told you you'd like him, Sieg."

Siegrain's eyebrow twitched, "We'll see."

**/\/\/\/\/\**

Erza drove Natsu to a warehouse a few blocks away from the police station, somewhere Natsu didn't like being, even if he was working for the cops. In the warehouse, cars were parked everywhere.

Erza offered a smile, "Pick your poison."

Natsu grinned, rubbing his hands together as he looked around. He walked through the cars, checking out models from American Muscle to Imports.

After a while, he glanced at Erza, "You got anything you know I'll like?"

Erza grinned, "I've got just the thing."

She took him over to a black Corvette that made Natsu crow, "Oh, now you're just showing off!"

The red-head laughed, "Yeah, I thought you'd like this. What you're looking at is a Chevrolet Corvette Z06. 7.0 liter V8 engine that'll pump out 505 horsepower all day long, Natsu. Classic muscle car."

"When I'm through with her, she'll run more than 505, I'll tell you that right now." he grinned.

Erza pulled out the keys from the inside glovebox and tossed them to Natsu, "Better get to work then, big guy. After that, I'll take you to meet up with your partner."

Natsu stopped jingling the keys like a kid with a christmas gift and stared at her, "Partner? What?"

"What, you didn't think I'd send you in to deal with these guys on your own, did you?" Erza chuckled, "No, we have an agent inside Phantom's underworld. She'll get you into the race in a couple days."

"She?" he repeated.

"Come on. Let's go meet her." Erza said, "Anything you want for the Corvette while we're out?"

"Tell your crew to clean her up and prep her. If she's got any kinks, I wanna work 'em before this car hits the streets." he muttered, "Oh yeah, better add some flames to the body and a nitrous mod."

Erza raised an eyebrow, "That's illegal."

Natsu snorted, "If I'm gonna run for the cops and a gang at the same time, I'm running something that's fast enough to get away from either one of 'em."

She sighed, "Oh, fine. I'll tell them to add the modifications. Now let's go meet up with your partner."

**/\/\/\/\/\**

The moment he saw the bar, Natsu wanted to turn around.

"No. No, no, no, no. You didn't tell me we were coming here." he growled.

Erza sighed, "You have to face them sometime, Natsu. Might as well get it over with."

Natsu swore, "God damn. That's all I need right now."

"Stop whining and man up." Erza scolded as she parked the car.

The teen shook his head, "I thought we were going to meet up with my partner."

"We are. She's in there." the red-head told him.

"Of course she is." he muttered, climbing out of Erza's car and slamming the door behind him.

Erza rolled her eyes, "Big baby."

**/**

The bar's name was Fairy Tail.

Before Natsu had bolted out of the States, this had been a place he frequented almost daily. It was where he met up with his friends to hang out and chat. It had a lot of good memories.

But that didn't mean shit now.

Oh, his friends were in the bar, as usual. He caught sight of some familiar faces sitting around.

A tiny old man sitting on the counter was going through a magazine. Gramps, or Makarov Dreyar.

A dark haired man about his age with no shirt on? Gray Fullbuster, for sure. Natsu's old rival.

Big guy with a fetish for calling everything a man? Elfman Strauss. He'd definitely try to avoid that one.

The chick with a drinking problem was Cana, and sure enough, she was chugging alcohol on one of the tables.

One of the guys in the back had a couple of girls with him, clearly a playboy. That'd be Loke.

And the waitress, the one behind the bar and facing the opposite direction- she was the one he didn't feel comfortable around at all. Mirajane Strauss.

Natsu walked in and stopped until Erza followed in behind him. She glanced at his tense expression and called over, "Hey, Mira! Can I get two drinks?"

"Sure, Erza!" the woman called back, still facing away from them.

"You would." Natsu hissed under his breath to Erza.

"Deal with it." she muttered back, then led him to a table where a blonde girl Natsu didn't recognize was sitting.

The girl looked up as they approached, then smiled, "Hi, Erza! Who's this? New boyfriend?"

Erza smirked, "He wishes."

"Hah!" Natsu laughed harshly, "Nah, I've never had a taste for cops anyway. Especially not this one. She's got more guns than I've had fights."

The girl giggled a little, "No cops, huh? And how many cops have you actually known?"

"Cops I know by name or cops I've left in the dust?" he asked.

A small smile found its way onto the blonde's face, "How about personally?"

"One. This one." Natsu answered, pointing to Erza.

The girl tilted her head and appraised him with bright brown eyes, "Well, we'll see what you think after you meet some more."

"Really?" Natsu raised an eyebrow.

Suddenly, a glass shattered.

The three glanced in surprise to see Mira, staring in such shock that the tray had fallen and broke the glasses with their drinks.

The woman's mouth was hanging open, but she covered it with her hands after a moment and whispered, "N..Natsu…?"

Natsu held her gaze for a bit, then looked away, "Long time no see, Mira."

"Natsu?!" Elfman bellowed.

Gray got up and spun towards them, staring at the other man with first disbelief, then anger, "What the hell is he doing here?"

"Not talking to your naked ass." Natsu snapped.

Erza flashed warning glares between them, "Stop it, both of you!"

"Wh-where have you been?!" Mira gasped.

Natsu shrugged, "A few places down in Central America. Spent a couple weeks in Mexico, then Belize…settled down for a year in Guatemala. Then Erza dragged my ass out of the favelas."

Gray sneered, "Sounds like you've had it rough. So, you done running, pussy?"

"If I run your ass over, then maybe." Natsu threatened.

"Keep arguing you two, and neither of you will have balls by the end of the day." Erza ordered.

Natsu and Gray immediately obeyed, knowing the tough cop would make good on her threat.

Mira looked like she couldn't decide whether she wanted to slap Natsu or hug him. She settled for looking him over and biting her lip, "Why'd you leave?"

Natsu opened his mouth, but Erza interrupted, "Mira, I know you two need to talk, but I have to talk with Natsu and Lucy about their job."

"Job?" Loke, who hadn't really been paying attention first, glanced over.

Cana also frowned, "What, so Natsu's a cop now?"

"Pff." Natsu looked like he wanted to spit, "Bitch, I'm no more a cop than you're sober."

"Okay, you can be quiet now." Erza told him, "Sorry, Mira, but could you get us some new drinks? Everyone go back to your business so I can brief Natsu and Lucy."

The others walked off, casting glances at Natsu as they left. Gray was shaking his head and Elfman looked like he wanted to strangle Natsu. Makarov was the only one who offered the young man a warm smile of welcome.

Erza and Natsu sat down with Lucy. The red head started off, "Natsu Dragneel, meet Lucy Heartfilia. She's my friend and our inside source to get at Jose's gang."

Lucy held out a hand, which he shook. The blonde smiled at him, "Glad to be working with you. Erza's told me a lot about her missing friend, but I never thought I'd actually meet you in person. You've had her follow what, five, six different sources?"

"Found him on lucky number seven." Erza said proudly.

Natsu grunted, "So, what'd she tell you about me?"

"Let's see, the words reckless, street racer, and, 'All fired up' seemed to show in every conversation about you." Lucy replied.

He snorted with amusement, "Yeah, that sounds like me."

"The only other thing she said a lot that I haven't seen so far is that big smile." Lucy said with a glance at Erza.

The red head shrugged, "I guess some people change."

"Or they just don't have a reason to smile in the first place." he muttered.

"Some people don't need a reason." Lucy pointed out.

Natsu glanced away and spoke to Erza, "So, what's Lucy gonna be doing with me?"

"She's dug herself deep into Phantom's organization. She'll get you set up for the street race in a couple days." Erza explained.

He looked at the blonde, "Do you race?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" she said mischievously.

"Anyway, once she gets you in, Lucy will manage your work on Phantom's side for us. Try and get along, okay?" Erza cast a warning look at Natsu as she said this.

Natsu nodded, "I got it."

A moment later, Mira came over with their drinks, placing them down in front of the three. She didn't look at Natsu at all, then quickly walked behind the bar to the storeroom.

Natsu tapped his fingers on the table for few seconds as Erza and Lucy sipped their drinks, then sighed and got up to follow Mira.

Erza stared after him, but let the teen go.

**/**

Natsu went into the storeroom and found Mira moving some bottles to different shelves. She stopped as he approached, glancing over her shoulder at the teen for a brief moment.

She swallowed and asked shakily, "What do you want?"

He sighed, "Look, I know you don't want to talk with me, but…"

Mira paused and looked at him again, "I didn't say that. You owe me an explanation, but I'm just not sure I'm ready to talk to you."

"I know." Natsu murmured, "Do you wanna take a drive later?"

She bit her lip, then nodded, "Yeah. Just pick me up here at ten. That's when I get off work."

"Sure." he said, then turned to leave. Natsu stopped before he took the stairs and looked back, "Mira?"

Mira didn't turn to look at him, she just kept checking off bottles and sorting them.

Natsu shook his head, "I'm sorry."

She hesitated at that, then got back to work.

Natsu left, and a few moments after, Mira cupped her mouth to hold in the sounds of her crying. She finally sobbed and muttered, "Idiot…"


	3. Drive

**Yay, another chapter! I'll be updating again soon, so watch out for another chapter! The quick race in this one is just icing on the cake for what's to come!**

**As always, please review and thanks for reading!**

_Chapter 3: Drive_

Natsu was in Erza's garage, since he was stuck staying at her place for the time being. He was putting the finishing touches on the Corvette he'd taken from the impound lot, making sure the car was prepped for some serious driving.

He adjusted the air pressure in the tires, checked the engine, and worked out every small kink the vehicle had. It had to be complete before he could think about racing it.

Finally, Natsu finished his adjustments and wiped the car down, making the black gleam in the garage light. The flame patterns he'd wanted couldn't be prepared in time, so he decided to just settle for the nitrous mod the police HAD set him up with.

"It looks good."

He glanced over his shoulder to see Erza with a cup in her hands, smiling at the finished Corvette. The red head pulled out her phone and looked at the time, "It's almost 9:30. Go get yourself cleaned up. You don't want to be a stinky mess when you talk with Mira."

"Yeah." Natsu muttered, then tossed the towel he'd been using into a bucket of water and walked past Erza back inside the house.

Erza studied the Corvette for a few moments, then sighed. _This is familiar…Natsu has always been good at fine-tuning already great cars. I hope it's enough to survive a race in Phantom Lord. It'll have to be._

**/\/\/\/\/\**

After cleaning up, Natsu got in his Corvette and pulled out of Erza's garage, then drove to the Fairy Tail bar, always driving about 10 mph over the speed limit. To him, the signs were just a suggestion. 30 mph meant 40 or 50 to him.

He stopped just outside the bar, where Mira was just walking out the door. Elfman was with her, and he stared at the black Corvette as it rolled up, but Mira said something to him and got in on the passenger side. Natsu didn't even look at Elfman, not able to tell the big man that his sister would be fine.

The last time he'd said that, it had turned out to be a lie.

As soon as Mira closed the car door, Natsu drove away from the bar without a word. After a few minutes, he glanced at the girl beside him, "Where to?"

Mira pursed her lips, then mumbled, "How about _El Matador? _I haven't been to the beach in a while."

Natsu said nothing in reply and just shifted to a different lane, accelerating as he did so.

**/**

It was quiet for about ten minutes until they got on the Pacific Coast Highway, then it was just a quick right turn and they were on the water.

Natsu pulled into an empty lot and parked, then got out of the car and walked down to a dock behind Mirajane, who didn't look at him as she went ahead.

They walked down to the edge of the dock and sat down in utter silence for a while, neither person daring to so much as glance at the other.

Mira finally broke the uneasy silence, "Why'd you leave, Natsu?"

Natsu stared down at the water for a bit, twiddling his thumbs restlessly, before he answered, "I don't know. After that crash…when I saw the car explode…I didn't think. I just drove as fast as I could to get away. Before I knew it, I'd gone over the border and there was no turning back from there."

Mira bit her lip, "You made everyone here really sad. We were all crying in the bar that night."

"…What I did back then was wrong." he murmured, "I didn't even stop for a second to think about you or everyone else, I just ran. That's what I'm best at. That's why Erza and Sieg recruited me for this job."

She glanced at him with sad accusation in her blue eyes, "I just can't believe you didn't at least come to her funeral. I was so mad at you when that happened."

Natsu nodded, "I went to the Cathedral first thing after coming back here, but…I know that's no excuse for what I did back then. I turned my back on my family…" He sighed and leaned back, looking skyward with a frown, "You'd think after all the times she told me to take care of my family, that I'd have learned what that meant by now."

"Have you?" Mira asked.

"I'm not sure." he admitted, "I didn't want to come back at all. Not after what happened…L.A. is my home, and you guys are my friends, but I didn't think it'd solve anything if I came back to see you again."

Mira took his hand and clasped it tightly, "We're your family, Natsu. Don't ever forget that again. It's not the city you live in that's your home…it's where the people who care about you are."

Natsu bowed his head, "I know…"

Now the girl smiled, and leaned over to whisper in his ear, "Lisanna would be proud that you came back…and for the record, I am too."

The teen remained still as Mira kissed his cheek briefly, then pulled back and stood up, "We should get home. Elfman will wonder what's happened to us."

Natsu got up and walked her back to the car, where they got in and drove back off the way they came.

**/**

Natsu let Mira out at her front porch, where Elfman was waiting with his arms crossed. The big man looked relieved that Mirajane had survived a drive with Natsu, but he still didn't say anything to the other man. Not that Natsu said anything back, anyways.

Mira smiled at him through the passenger window, "I'll see you around, Natsu. Oh, hey!"

She took out a small notepad from her pocket and scribbled something down, then handed it to him.

Natsu looked the note over, which had two numbers on it: A phone number, and an address.

"The number is mine." Mira said brightly, "And you should check out the address. Goodnight."

"'Night. Thanks, Mira." Natsu offered a genuine smile, then rolled up the window and sped off, leaving the Strauss house behind.

When he was gone, Elfman grunted, "I can't believe you went with him."

Mira glanced at her brother, "Someone had to talk to him. He really is sorry, Elfman. He was just scared."

The big man was surprised, "Natsu? Scared?"

"Even he can be scared sometimes. He's not the same person he was when he left, but…" Mira smiled optimistically, "I think he can go back to normal after a bit. Maybe a race will change him again…"

**/**

After about twenty minutes of driving around, Natsu finally found the address Mira had given him. The house he'd discovered was old and worn-down, but the garage was huge, and Natsu could hear the sounds of machinery inside.

He grinned. He knew what this was.

Natsu parked the Corvette in the driveway and throttled the engine for a few seconds to get the attention of whoever was inside the garage. He waited for a bit as the noise died down and went silent.

A girl who was likely about seventeen walked out, long, dark blue hair wrapped in a ponytail behind her. She was a mess, covered in grease and dirt, no doubt from doing work on a car.

_She grew up, _he thought, watching the girl frown and stare at the black Corvette in confusion.

Natsu finally broke the suspense and climbed out of the car, then flashed a grin at the girl. Her eyes widened and her mouth fell open in shock. Now he laughed, "You should see the look on your face."

The girl's shocked look turned almost instantly to a huge smile, and with a loud squeal she ran up and jumped at him, hugging the older teen tightly. She gasped, "Oh my god, no way!"

"Nice to see you again, Wendy." he chuckled as he caught the girl and held her up easily.

Wendy started laughing and crying, then pulled back slightly and cupped his face, "Y-you're back…wow, I never thought I'd see you again…"

"Neither did I." he admitted, "Erza strong-armed me into coming back."

"Well, I'll have to get something to thank her for that!" Wendy smiled and hugged Natsu again, mumbling into the material of his shirt, "I'm so glad you came back…"

Natsu smiled and, still holding her up, walked the girl back inside the garage. He set her down there, then looked around the place for a bit, noting car parts and tools set aside neatly. A dark blue Honda S2000 was in the middle of the garage, propped up so Wendy could do some work on it.

He smirked after a while, "Nice place. It's cleaner than the old garage we had a couple years ago."

"That's because you and Gajeel aren't here to make a mess." she giggled, punching his shoulder playfully, "This place- the house, the garage- it's all mine. This is my shop."

Natsu stared at her, appalled, "I never would've thought…Little Wendy went and became a gear-head."

Wendy laughed again, then paused and frowned.

Natsu blinked, "What?"

"I'm filthy…Aw, why didn't you tell me you were coming back? I could've gotten cleaned up a little, you know!" her cheek puffed up indignantly.

"I just got back today! I wasn't even sure you were still in town." he protested, then looked back over at the Honda. Hoping to change the conversation, he nodded at the car, "That yours?"

Wendy smiled, "Yup!"

Natsu raised an eyebrow in appreciation, "How'd you afford that?"

"I won it." she said proudly.

Now both of his eyebrows shot up, "You race?"

"Mmhm. Pretty good at it, too. Still haven't beat Gajeel, though." she sighed.

"Ah, don't beat yourself up." Natsu shrugged, "Gajeel's pretty good. He's got more experience racing than you do, as well. Give yourself some credit for winning enough to afford this place and win that car."

"Yeah…" Wendy smiled and trailed off, "Once he got into Phantom, we had a fight and I spent a few weeks with Mira until I won enough money to buy this place."

Natsu sighed, "I'll have to deal with him eventually, I guess. I didn't think he'd be stupid enough to run with a gang like Phantom, but oh well."

"Well…" Wendy bit her lip and looked down, "Sometimes, I don't really blame him. You were the only person he could race against that gave him a challenge. Everyone else, he couldn't care less about. When you…disappeared…Gajeel went around for months trying to find someone worth racing against, but he never found one until he entered one of Phantom's races. I guess that's why he joined up. Just so he could race like before."

"What about you?"

"Me? I've just been working here…fixing up cars and racing now and then. Nothing too special." she said with a shrug.

Natsu grinned, "Tell you what…go get cleaned up and let's take a little drive. I wanna see how good you've gotten."

Wendy brightened up immediately, "Sure! Come on inside!"

**/**

Wendy's house was pretty small, though it was neat. One bedroom, one bath, a small kitchen and dining room basically summed up the place.

While the girl took a shower, Natsu looked over some of the pictures she had on the walls. Most were some he'd seen before; Some of him and Wendy a couple years earlier, when the girl had just started to drive. One picture had an image of him, Wendy, and another guy sitting on a Plymouth muscle car. The other guy had a mane of spiky black hair and multiple piercings all over his body.

That was Gajeel. An orphan like Natsu, he and the pink-haired boy had met up during their very first street races, and had been rivals ever since they could drive. After winning a number of races, they'd bought out a garage to work on cars.

They had been the top dogs on the streets, owning the races until people started calling them the Dragon Slayers. The name was due to the fact that both of them had a taste for draconic artwork. Natsu's old car had an image of a fire-breathing dragon on the sides, and Gajeel had a silver dragon tattoo on his chest.

Then Wendy came into the picture.

Natsu had found Wendy living on the streets after she ran away from an orphanage. He'd taken the girl in and taught her how drive, but it was shortly after that when Natsu ditched the states.

While he was checking the photos and reminiscing, Natsu found an item that surprised and disturbed him at the same time.

"Natsu, I'm almost ready. Just let me get dressed…and…?" Wendy came out wrapped in a towel, but blinked when she saw him staring at the object in question.

The object was a white scarf with scale patterns on it, a gift from his father that Natsu had treasured for years. But he'd left it when he ran from the states.

He gave her an incredulous look, "Where'd you get this?"

Wendy shook her head, "I didn't. Gajeel pulled it from the wreck and I stitched it up. He wouldn't let the cops take the Plymouth and moved the wreckage back to the old shop. It took him a year, but he fixed it."

Natsu stared at her, "He's running my old Barracuda?"

"Yeah. He redid the paintwork, though." she murmured, "Your fire dragon got traded up for an iron dragon. He redid most of the body on that car, too. It looks good, but it's just not the same."

Natsu looked back down at the scarf and picked it up, rubbing the soft fabric with his thumb. Wendy quickly walked into her room and closed the door so she could dressed.

Wendy came out a few minutes later wearing a plain white t-shirt and blue jeans. She offered a smile and nodded to the door, "Alright, let's go."

"You got it." he replied, following her outside.

**/**

The two sped through the streets of L.A., something that was second nature to them. Wendy kept up fairly easily with Natsu, often getting up on the side of the Corvette to smile through the window.

Natsu was more than happy she'd gotten so good, but this was easy stuff.

Eventually, they paused at a red light, the S2000 and Corvette right beside each other.

"Not bad, girl." Natsu called over.

"You haven't seen anything yet, Natsu." Wendy laughed.

"Really?" he grinned and glanced at the timer on the crosswalk. Fifteen seconds and counting down. Natsu raised an eyebrow at the girl in the S2000, "Alright. Next two lights. Let's see what you got."

Wendy's smile got even wider, "Okay."

Natsu faced the road and throttled the Corvette's engine, smirking confidently.

Wendy took a few deep breaths and eased her grip on the steering wheel.

The timer counted down, then the lights flashed bright green.

Natsu floored the gas and shifted straight into first gear, glancing over to watch Wendy come up to the side. Once he hit 50mph and felt the engine start laying down, he moved to second gear and flicked back up to 80 in seconds.

Wendy saw Natsu pull ahead in the Corvette, but she licked her lips and floored the gas of her S2000, watching as she slowly reeled him in.

At this point, the two blazed through the first light.

Natsu looked in his side mirror and saw Wendy getting closer, but he smirked and shifted to third gear, then floored it and watched the speedometer climb to just over 100mph.

Wendy smiled fiercely, "Alright, Natsu. Try this!"

The girl flipped a switch on her dashboard and pressed it. Nitrous caused a sudden burst in her Honda's speed, letting the S2000 bring the Corvette ever closer.

But Natsu wasn't beat. He grinned, "Too early, Wendy."

He quickly shifted into fourth gear and hit the NOS, making the Corvette roar ahead with speed easily exceeding 120mph. Natsu passed under the second light with nearly a full second ahead.

Natsu slowed up a bit and let Wendy pull up beside him. He flashed her a grin and opened his mouth, but then flashing lights showed up in their rearview mirrors.

Wendy giggled with delight, "Run!"

They floored the gas again and shot away onto the highway as the police car attempted to give chase. But it was an older model and stood no chance against the two high-speed cars, as their speedometers exceeded 100mph and easily outpaced it. For good measure, they weaved back and forth around other cars and gained a huge lead.

Natsu could almost picture the cop's frustration and snickered, "Drive a shit car, that's what you get!"

Wendy motioned through the window for Natsu to follow her as she changed lanes and exited the highway, speeding through the neighborhood to get home.

**/**

They pulled into Wendy's garage and stopped, but Natsu stayed by his Corvette.

Wendy came around and stood in front of him, offering a rueful smile, "Well, you beat me. Guess I shouldn't be surprised."

"Hey, don't sell yourself short." Natsu patted her shoulder, "You did good. That cop never stood a chance."

She pursed her lips shyly, "So…where are you staying?"

He shrugged, "I'm with Erza right now, but I don't plan on sticking it with a cop for long, even if she's my friend."

"Maybe you could stay with me. Just like old times?" she asked hopefully.

Natsu thought about it, but shook his head, "No. Not while I've got cops watching my every move. I don't wanna get you in trouble."

He could tell Wendy was disappointed, so Natsu winked, "Don't worry, though. I'm gonna need a garage they don't know about. Know any good places?"

Wendy's smile came back with a giggle, "I think I might have a good spot." She pulled out her phone and frowned, "You'd better go, or Erza will get mad."

"I guess." Natsu sighed, then looked her over for a moment, "I'll see you around, Wendy."

"Yeah." Wendy hugged him tightly, then let the teen get back in his Corvette. She waved goodbye as he pulled out and drove off, leaving the girl to watch until the tail lights disappeared.


	4. Setting Up

**As the title of this chapter implies, it's more development, but the next chapter brings in THE Black Steel, Gajeel in the first real race of this story! Again, pairings are still undecided, however there will be NaLu (Won't say if that'll be it at the ending (; ) but that's all I have so far, so...**

**Anyways, as always, please REVIEW and thanks for reading!**

_Chapter 4: Setting Up_

The next morning, Natsu was awoken by a noise he decided was annoying, obnoxious, and didn't need to be heard in any place in the world.

AKA: the alarm clock.

Erza set the alarm for 5:30 every morning, something Natsu immensely disliked. Even if he was bunking with her, he was quite tempted to take a baseball bat to the damn thing and beat the shit out of it.

Natsu would wake up when he wanted, not when the clock rang.

He rolled over on the couch and buried his head under a pillow, groaning miserably.

Erza clapped her hands as she came through the living room, "Up, Natsu!"

"Seriously…?" Natsu complained, "Erza, I'm like half-dead here. Lemme sleep a little longer…"

"Don't make me take out a paintball gun." she warned, "I do target practice from 6 to 6:45 every other morning."

Natsu got off the couch immediately, "I'm up, I'm up. So wha…ahh…" He yawned and shook his head to clear the sleep from his mind, then tried again, "What are we-?" Natsu trailed off again and stared at the woman.

Erza, who had little sense of decency, was walking around the house in her bra and panties. She went to the kitchen and started cooking breakfast until she realized it was quiet and caught Natsu staring. Erza shrugged, "What?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing." he managed, a little turned on by the image the beautiful red head presented.

"Oh, come on, Natsu." Erza rolled her eyes and smirked, "It's nothing you haven't seen before."

Natsu's eyes got wide, "Okay, I have _never _seen you-"

"I don't mean me." she raised an eyebrow mischievously, "Don't tell me you never saw Lisanna like this. You were both 17, didn't you have a little fun now and then?"

Now his eyes flashed and he looked away, "We didn't. She wanted to wait until we got married."

Erza's gaze softened, "I'm sorry. You just strike me as the type of guy who would…"

"She didn't want to, and I never complained. What's for breakfast?" he demanded, more than a little keen on changing the topic.

"I'm just going to warm up some cake, but there's cereal in the pantry." she offered.

Natsu rolled his eyes. _Cake. I should've known…_

For the next ten minutes, Natsu was almost certain Erza was just messing with him, because she didn't bother putting any clothes over her underwear the whole time they ate breakfast. It was nice and irritating at the same time, because he knew that if he tried ANYTHING with his friend (Who happened to be smoking hot) she'd shoot bullets at his pants.

In fact, she would probably kick his ass without a firearm at all, but it was always best to plan for the worst.

**/**

When they finished up and Erza FINALLY put some clothes on, Natsu followed Erza's red Nissan Altima in his Corvette to a large mansion.

After going through a gate and security, Natsu parked the car in a large driveway beside Erza and got out with an impressed look, "What's in there, the bat cave?"

She smiled and nodded, "Look."

He glanced back to the building's entrance and saw Lucy walking out the front door. The blonde girl had a cheerful look on her face, "Hi guys! Welcome to my home!"

Natsu's eyebrows shot up, "You _live _here?"

Lucy blinked, "Why so surprised?"

"Uh, you're a cop, right? What the hell are you working that job for if you live in a place like this?" he said it as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

She shrugged, "I like my job. Besides, this is just my dad's place. He's part of a big railroad company."

"And his daughter is out shooting it up with the local thugs." Natsu muttered, "That's pretty sketchy."

Lucy smiled, "Why don't you come inside and we can talk? Bye, Erza."

Erza nodded, "I'll be at the station if you need me. Sieg and I are gonna do a little more research on the Phantom guys."

The red head pulled out and left, so Lucy took Natsu inside the mansion.

Maids were all over the place, making sure every inch of the house was clean. Natsu looked around at the extravagant furniture and whistled appreciatively, "Man, you've got it made."

Lucy's smile wavered as she led him upstairs, "It's really not that great…"

"Are you kidding?" he asked, "My version of nice is anyplace that doesn't smell like motor oil."

She laughed at that, then flashed him a curious glance, "Are you one of those guys who's just completely obsessed with cars?"

Natsu grinned, "That'd be called a gear-head. Yup, that sounds like me, alright. Anything on four wheels I can outrun the cops with is my style."

"Erza told me you did a lot of street races." Lucy said, then took him into a large bedroom. The place was very neat, with fancy furniture and a desk piled up with papers.

Lucy nodded to a couple of maids and ushered them out, then locked the door once they were gone.

Natsu appraised his surroundings and shook his head in amazement, "Am I even in L.A. anymore? This ain't the beat up, ghetto city I'm used to."

"It's just the little bit that crime hasn't come near…surprisingly." she murmured.

Natsu glanced at her, "Why's that?"

Lucy sighed, "My dad deals with a lot of money here…a couple of his co-workers have been robbed and murdered in their own houses."

"By Phantom." he realized, then fixed her with a serious look, "You're not a cop at all, are you? You're just trying to keep your dad safe by busting these guys…"

She looked away and spoke quietly, "Erza had me under the impression you were just a cocky street kid…I didn't think you'd guess that fast."

"Do you even know what you're doing?" he demanded, "These guys don't joke around. They aren't people you mess with, especially if you're a rich blonde who doesn't even know how rough things can really get on the streets."

Lucy gave him a hard stare, "I've seen pictures Erza's shown me. I've seen video clips. I know how bad it is."

Natsu shook his head, "No, you don't. Until you've lived it and seen the hell people can bring, you've got no idea what these people are capable of."

"What do you suggest I do?" she asked harshly, "Let these thugs kill my dad? They haven't succeeded yet, but they've gotten close."

"Just leave it to me and Erza. We know what we're doing." Natsu ordered, "I grew up on these streets. I've beaten almost every guy with a set of wheels in this city."

Lucy glared at him, "You just want me to do nothing and hope my dad stays safe? Let me ask you something, street boy, would you leave your dad in that situation?"

"How the hell would I know? My dad left _me_ on my own when I was ten."

The blonde was taken aback, "Wh-what?"

Natsu looked out the window to the front lawn of the mansion, shoving his hands into his pockets, "I never knew my mom. Dad always said she had to go away for a while. I'm assuming she's either dead, or somewhere I don't want to know about."

"My old man taught me about cars even when I was little. Every day, we were down in the garage, working on someone's ride. It was great. Then one day, I woke up in our apartment and he wasn't there. He just vanished. Like smoke. I thought for a while that maybe he was going to get mom."

Natsu tossed his car keys up and down without even looking, "A month passed and he didn't show. The guys at the apartment complex kicked me out and sent me to an orphanage. The person in charge was some guy called Bora that smoked all the time. I got tired of that real quick, so two days after I was sent to the orphanage, I jacked his '72 Barracuda and drove back to my old streets."

Lucy stared at him, then dipped her head, "I-I'm so sorry…Erza never told me-"

"Don't pity me." he warned, "If there's one thing I hate, it's pity. I lost a lot as a kid, but it all got better for me after that. I met Erza, the old man, Wendy, Lisanna…"

Natsu trailed off and murmured, "If there's one thing I've learned in this city, it's that if you get too complacent, what you love will get taken from you. That's why I left for two years. I got sick of this god-forsaken place stealing away the people who were most important to me…"

"Hey."

Lucy came up and hugged him, murmuring into his shirt, "I'm sorry. Not because I pity you, but because I said something stupid without thinking. Please forgive me?"

Natsu sighed, "It's alright…Sorry I snapped, I just…I can't decide if I love or hate this city anymore."

"If people who are important to you are still here, then just think about them." Lucy whispered, "I think the best kind of person is one who can see through all the bad things to the goodness inside of someone. Are you like that?"

He shook his head, "No. That part of me died with Lisanna. She's the one who kept me from doing really bad stuff for all those years. After she died…I didn't care anymore. Anyone who got in my way was fair game."

Lucy was still behind him, eyes widening with every little detail she learned about the young man.

Natsu glanced over his shoulder, "If you're the kind of person you talked about…the kind that can see through the bullshit, then I dare you to see through me."

The blonde girl swallowed and avoided the piercing dark eyes, "It's just a lot for me to take in…Erza never told me about why you left, only that you did." Lucy's arms wrapped around his chest and squeezed a little, "So…you really loved her, didn't you? Lisanna?"

Natsu just nodded, the expression on his face solemn.

"She sounds like she was a wonderful person…" Lucy whispered, "But if she meant so much to you and spent all that time trying to make you into a good man, then you shouldn't take all that and throw it away now that she isn't here anymore. Let it go before it's too late."

"It was too late two years ago." he muttered.

Lucy let him go, then moved so she was in front of him. Her lips formed a pout, one Natsu had to admit was pretty darn cute.

"We need to go. Promise you'll think about what I said?" she asked.

Natsu glanced away, "I'll try."

**/\/\/\/\/\**

After leaving the mansion, Natsu drove with Lucy's direction to a club in the city.

She got them inside, then led him through a crowd of drunk and dancing people to a room in the back. There, the noise from the blaring music was quieted, and only a few people were hanging out.

A dark-skinned girl sitting in a chair looked up from a card game she was playing with a black guy. She smiled, "Hey, Lucy. What's up?"

"Oh, you know, Sue. The usual." Lucy said cheerfully, then nodded to the man, "Have you beaten her yet, Boze?"

The man sighed and took a swig of Miller Light, "Nope. So who's this guy, Lucy? New boyfriend? Who the hell has pink hair?"

"The guy that runs his car faster than your big mouth, I'll tell you that right now." Natsu said, crossing his arms.

Sue raised an eyebrow and grinned, "Street racer, huh? Where you from?"

"Here." he muttered evenly, "I've just been out a few years for a little vacation. Got sick of all the cops trying to write me up for driving twenty miles over the limit and jay walking."

Boze snorted, "You sure you wanna jay walk onto Phantom's streets?"

Natsu smirked, "I walk where I want, bitch."

Lucy tried to hide a smile, but Sue laughed, "Ooh, I like this one! Is he taken, Lucy?"

"That depends on if he can keep me interested for the rest of the day." she joked.

Sue cackled and held out her hand, "Alright, Mr. Jay Walker, gimme a name and a number I can put in my phone."

"Natsu." he replied as he shook her hand, then jotted down his number at the girl's request.

Boze rolled his eyes, "Right, now that you three are done flirting, can someone tell me why he's here?"

"I just said I run my car faster than you run your mouth." Natsu pointed out, "I'm not here to watch. Lucy told me you got a race coming up. I want in."

Sue chewed her lip thoughtfully, "And what can you do that proves you aren't a cop trying to sneak into our gang?"

"Oh, I got something for ya." he said clearly, "I ran with Black Steel a few years back."

Boze practically choked on his drink. Sue dropped her cards and Lucy's eyebrows shot up.

Sue recovered first and crossed her arms, "That's a bold claim…tell me more. What's Black Steel's-"

"He's a Dragon Slayer, he runs a '72 Plymouth Barracuda, and his real name is Gajeel Redfox." Natsu interrupted.

Sue and Boze exchanged glances. Boze shrugged, "He knows what he's talking about, I'll give him that. Alright."

Boze got up and stared Natsu in the face, "I'll set you up at the race. But Gajeel's running that one, too. He'll know if your being honest, and believe me-"

"If Gajeel's anything like he was a couple years ago, he'd probably beat me with a wrench." Natsu remarked, "But I ain't playing you. I'll see you two tomorrow."

Sue nodded, "Okay. Bye, Lucy!"

Lucy said goodbye, then walked out of the room with Natsu in tow.

**/**

Once outside, she glared at him, "What are you playing at?!"

"What?" he frowned.

Lucy looked ready to smack him, "Idiot, you can't just act like you know Black Steel! You-"

"Lucy, I _do _know him." Natsu interrupted, "I ran with that guy for the better part of seven years. We worked at a garage together and pulled all sorts of shit. I know Gajeel better than I know Erza."

"But Black Steel- Gajeel's a criminal!" she gasped, "He's killed people, Natsu! All the agents Erza and Sieg sent in- he killed them all!"

"He wasn't always like that." Natsu muttered, "I don't know what his deal is now, but I'll beat some answers outta him after I leave him in my dust at the race."

Lucy took a shaky breath, "Gajeel…even I didn't know his name because I'm fairly new here."

"Leave the bastard to me." he grunted, "You just get me set up for the race and watch me burn the competition."

**/\/\/\/\/\**

Natsu drove Lucy home and was about to leave when she stopped him, "Where do you think you're going?"

He blinked, "Um, Erza's house? The place I stayed at last night?"

At that moment, a maid came up and bowed, "Master Natsu? Miss Erza sent your belongings here earlier. They just arrived minutes ago and were sent to your room."

Natsu frowned, "Room? What?"

Lucy sighed, "She forgot to tell you? You can't run for us in Phantom and stay at a cop's house. You're staying with me."

**/**

The room he got was way over the top.

Huge dresser, huge bed, huge closet…

Natsu only had one question:

"Where's the kitchen?"

"Would you like something to eat, Master Natsu?" a maid asked.

He shook his head, "Just tell me where it is and I'll get myself something."

Lucy sighed, "Natsu, this is Virgo. She'll be taking care of your room, and she's here for a reason. Let her do her job."

"Well…" Natsu shrugged and jammed his hands into his pockets, "Right, can I get something spicy? Just something that tastes hot."

Virgo bowed and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. That left them alone in a room once more.

Natsu sighed and fell back onto the huge, comfy bed. He grinned, "Man, I ain't ever felt something this soft."

"Really?" Lucy asked, "Not even close?"

"Well…" he looked away and muttered, "I guess…"

Lucy caught the uneasy look and arched an eyebrow, "Are you thinking about Lisanna? Was she _soft?"_

Natsu held up his hands, "I-we never did anything…We never took it farther than just kissing each other…"

"So you were thinking about her." Lucy murmured, then sat beside him, "Then you like girls who want a man to protect them?"

He watched her carefully, "I like a girl that's soft, but doesn't crack under pressure. One that has her sweet side when it's just us, and has a little dark in her when shit goes down. She can't be afraid to keep things from me, because no matter what happens, I won't ever think any less of her."

Lucy listened closely and eventually smiled, "That does sound a bit like me…but I'm not sold yet, tough guy."

Natsu sat up and stretched, "Well, apparently, we'll be seeing a lot of each other. You'll get more time." He stood and made for the door.

She called after him, "Where are you going?"

"Out for a drive." he replied.

"What about your food?" Lucy asked.

"Just save it til I get back."

**/\/\/\/\/\**

He decided to go to Wendy's garage and see what she was up to.

She had another car in the shop and was working on it when he pulled up. The girl came out of the garage with her face covered in grease, but her big smile was still bright white.

As Natsu got out of his car, Wendy puffed up her cheek, "Are you always gonna show up when I'm a filthy mess?"

"Only for a little while." he grinned.

Wendy smiled back. She couldn't stay mad at him.

She turned and walked inside with Natsu behind her. Wendy called over her shoulder, "I'm gonna get cleaned up, then we can go to Fairy Tail. I wanna see what everyone's up to."

Natsu shrugged uncomfortably, "Alright."

Wendy stopped and frowned at his tone, then apparently decided to confront him after she was clean.

**/**

And that's exactly what she did.

Once there was no longer a speck of grit on her face, Wendy crossed her arms and faced Natsu, "Why don't you want to go to Fairy Tail?"

"I don't think I'm very welcome there, anymore." he muttered.

Wendy sighed, "They don't hate you, Natsu. They just didn't understand why you left…_I _didn't understand. What happened?"

Natsu was quiet for a bit, then shook his head, "That night Lisanna died…The reason we got into that accident two years ago was because the cops showed up to the street race. I blamed them…so on my way out of L.A., I burned down a police station. Two of their guys tried to follow me, and I wrecked their cars going 80mph down the highway. They both made it out alive, but were in a hospital for weeks."

Wendy's brown eyes searched his dark ones, looking for something only she could see.

"I haven't forgiven them. If it had been any cop other than Erza who had shown up at my door in the favelas, I'd have put a bullet in their skull…" Natsu trailed off at Wendy's reaction, which was enough to make him stop talking.

She shifted close and hugged him, softly laying her head sideways against his chest. For a few moments, she was silent, until Natsu's arms came up and held her securely to him.

"Please don't kill someone. I don't believe the boy who saved me could do something like that." she whispered, a slight trembling in her voice.

Natsu stroked the dark blue hair gently, "I won't."

Wendy swallowed hard and squeezed her eyes shut as tears trickled down her face, "Natsu, I mean it. Please, don't do anything stupid. I..I just got you back…I can't lose you again…"

"Hey, shh…" he soothed. Natsu brought her closer and pressed his nose into her hair, where he could pick up the scent of strawberry shampoo and the faintest traces of smoke- probably from an engine some idiot had blown out and sent to her.

She was crying lightly into his chest, warm tears dampening his black shirt. He bore with it and rubbed her back gently, but remained silent through her sadness.

Wendy finally gulped in a breath and managed to keep her voice even, "Promise me that you'll stay this time…"

He nodded slightly, "You have my word, Wendy."

**/**

They drove down to Fairy Tail afterwards, hoping to meet up with some of their friends.

The bar was somewhat full, but Gray, Loke, and Elfman weren't present. Natsu didn't mind their absence, though. They annoyed the hell out of him, anyways.

Mira was serving as a waitress, as usual. Cana was sucking down alcohol, Makarov was sitting on the bar, and a couple guys were at a table with drinks and cigars.

Natsu recognized the two guys and nodded their way, "Hey, Macao, Wakaba, what's up?"

"Natsu!" Macao grinned, "The old man said you came back. Damn, son, you've grown up. You gonna run the streets again?"

"Something like that." he replied.

Wakaba laughed and pulled his cigar out for a moment, "Ladies and gentlemen, time's a-changing! The Fire Dragon Slayer is back in town!"

Macao nodded, "Oh, things are fixin' to get ugly around here."

"Actually, Macao, can you do me a favor?" Natsu asked.

The man blinked, "Depends. Whaddya need?"

"You still have that tow truck, right?"

"Yeah. What of it?"

Natsu grinned, "I wonder if maybe you could move something to Wendy's garage for me…"


	5. All Fired Up

**Ok, I'm leaving tomorrow to go to Dallas for the weekend, so this will be my last update for a few days. Don't worry though- I'll brainstorm and write any ideas down during the drive. This chapter has my first attempt at writing a street race, so tell me how I did please!**

**As always, please REVIEW and thanks for reading!**

_Chapter 5: All Fired Up_

The next day, Natsu spent the daylight hours fine-tuning his Corvette, making sure it was ready for some serious action. When the sun started going down, Lucy interrupted him in the mansion's garage.

"Get cleaned up. We're leaving for the race in an hour." she said.

"You got it." he murmured, walking past her to the door.

Lucy glanced from the perfect-looking Corvette to the young man, "Do you think you're going to win?"

"Oh, I'll win." Natsu promised, "I'm not losing to Gajeel in this race."

She smiled at his determination, then pinched her nose and waved him off, "Go take a shower. You reek."

Natsu grinned and held his arms out, "Sure you don't wanna give me a hug first?"

"No!" she squealed and backed up, "Don't touch me, you stinky boy!"

He laughed and left the garage, allowing Lucy to giggle to herself.

_He's got his cute points, I'll give him that, _she thought.

**/**

After getting cleaned up, Natsu drove with Lucy's direction to a huge parking lot at an abandoned industrial area. A bunch of people were already there, blasting music and drinking and dancing. A few guys were already doing some quick drag races, and money was changing hands just as fast.

He parked the Corvette and hit the throttle a few times, announcing himself the same way he used to. A couple of people glanced over, checking the car out with whistles and appreciative looks.

Natsu watched some girls in skimpy outfits walk by and grinned. Lucy flashed him a look of disapproval, "What's with you?"

Natsu gave her a sideways look and a big smile, "I'm back home, now."

Lucy rolled her eyes, but smiled anyway.

Sue and Boze came up out of the crowd and met them as they got out of the car. Sue's eyebrows shot up at the sight of the sleek, black Corvette, "Damn, nice ride. How'd you afford that?"

"I won it." Natsu said easily.

Boze snorted doubtfully, "How'd you beat a monster like this?"

Natsu grinned, "Just because a guy gets a fast car doesn't mean he can race. If he doesn't have the skills, then he's just there to give me the keys when the race is over."

Sue laughed, "Well, shit, I wanna see that on the road! Pull her up over to those other three." She pointed at a spot where three cars were waiting, people surrounding the vehicles with excited looks. Sue grinned, "That's the starting line. We'll tell you how the race'll work once everyone's there."

"Good luck!" Lucy said with a smile, then walked off with Sue and Boze while Natsu got back in the Corvette and made his way through the crowd to the starting line.

His opponents were two guys and a girl- one of the guys was a man in a dark brown business suit, the girl a blue-haired woman with a rather expressionless face.

He recognized the third man without even hearing his name. The spiky black mane of hair and multiple piercings gave him away, not to mention the pitch-black Barracuda with a silver dragon painted on the side.

Gajeel.

The three were sitting on their cars, which comprised of Gajeel's Plymouth Barracuda, the other man's white 2010 Chrysler, and the woman's dark blue Honda Civic.

Natsu pulled up beside the woman's car, making sure he was on the end opposite Gajeel. He wasn't going to face that situation until they were on the road.

Sue walked up front and held up her hands to quiet the crowd. She cleared her throat and started talking, "Alright, listen up! You all heard Totomaru's had to go run a job, so we got him a replacement." She pointed to the teen sitting on his Corvette and proclaimed, "Guys, this is Natsu!"

Natsu just nodded at the crowd, trying to keep himself cool for the race. He had to contain the excited energy going through him.

A glance sideways noted the expression on his opponent's faces. The man and woman he didn't know looked like they could care less, but Gajeel's face?

Oh yeah. _Priceless._

Black Steel's jaw had dropped, and he blinked several times to ensure he wasn't just seeing things. Natsu savored the look of utter shock on his old rival's face.

But he wasn't down for long. His face went straight and he spoke up, "Hey, this guy hasn't even run the drag! How do we know he's any good?!"

Natsu glanced at Gajeel as the crowd went silent, waiting for his reaction. He called back, "Man, you can hate all you want, but whining ain't gonna get you nowhere."

Black Steel's eyebrows shot up, "Yeah? You think you got what it takes to roll on these streets, punk?"

"Oh, you know I got what it takes." Natsu looked at his rival thoughtfully, "You win any of those drags back there?"

"Three tonight, punk-ass. That's money in my pockets and respect you haven't even earned." Gajeel said confidently.

Natsu grinned, "Alright. Here's the deal. If I wind up losing, I'll give you my car."

_That _got the crowd going. Everyone liked a good high-stakes wager.

Gajeel was also used to this. He smirked back, "Alright, and what happens if you win?"

"You give me back that Barracuda." Natsu snapped, his voice gaining an edge. Now he was glaring at Gajeel, who bristled with hostility.

Now the crowd looked confused, recognizing that the two were familiar with each other, but not knowing what their relation was.

The woman with the Honda blinked in surprise, "Gajeel, do you know this guy?"

"Oh, _don't _I?" Gajeel muttered, then got off his hood and opened the Barracuda's driver side door, yelling at Natsu, "Let's settle this on the streets, punk. Show me you still got the skills."

"Bring it. I'm all fired up." Natsu shot back, climbing into his Corvette.

The other guy and woman got into their cars, then waited as Sue told them the course, "Okay! It's gonna be a straight shot down the highway to the edge of the desert and back! That's a four mile race! Remember, if the cops start chasing, they're your problem. First one back wins the 5 grande in cash prize!"

She pointed at Gajeel's car, "Ready, Gajeel?"

Gajeel's Barracuda roared to life, making the vehicle shake with the sheer power of the engine.

Natsu grinned. _Show off._

"Sol?" Sue called.

The Chrysler thrummed in response.

"Juvia?" she continued.

The Honda Civic rumbled in turn.

"Natsu?" Sue finished.

Natsu's Corvette unleashed a mighty roar, a challenge back to Black Steel's Barracuda.

Sue grinned and brought her hands up, then swung them down fast, "GO!"

Car tires squealed as the four vehicles shot forward, smoke pouring out in their wake. Natsu shifted immediately into first gear and poured it on until he overtook Sol and found himself neck and neck with Juvia.

Gajeel had already taken first, and was only getting faster with every passing second. He glared into his rearview mirror and saw Natsu's Corvette pull ahead of Juvia's Honda, nearly hitting his bumper.

"Punkass." Gajeel muttered, shifting gears and roaring ahead.

Natsu watched Gajeel floor it and shoot forward, but he wasn't about to let him get away. His Corvette pulled ahead as he blocked Juvia's path, making the woman hit her horn in frustration. Sol was in the back, yelling curses in french.

The four racers hit the highway and kept pouring it on, ignoring the cars swerving to avoid them.

Natsu shifted gears again, going at 90mph by now. He weaved around the traffic with the other racers not far away. Gajeel was still ahead, but he was getting closer as Natsu's Corvette reeled the Barracuda in.

He grinned fiercely, "Alright, Gajeel, let's see if you still got it."

Natsu shifted to fourth gear and pumped the engine up until he was driving over 100mph through the trafficking cars. His acceleration allowed him to come up neck and neck with Gajeel, who flashed him a glare through his side window. Natsu grinned back.

Black Steel promptly flicked him off.

Natsu laughed so hard he almost hit a truck in front of him, but he swerved and avoided the vehicle with practiced ease. Now he and Gajeel were shifting through the traffic with Juvia and Sol close behind.

Suddenly, flashing lights and sirens rang out, making all four drivers glance in their mirrors as several police vehicles began to chase them.

_"Fichus la police!" _Sol snapped in french.

Natsu watched a police Charger start catching up and muttered, "Shitty cops."

Gajeel suddenly had a police cruiser right in front of him brake, the officer apparently trying to force him to slow down. He swore and swerved to the next lane over, right underneath a huge eighteen wheeler. Black Steel yelled, "You ain't catchin' me! Not tonight, you fucktard!"

Natsu laughed, "Hahaha!"

But now all four racers had a problem.

The police had a roadblock ahead, barricading the street with two cars. A closer vehicle stopped at the side of the road and tossed a spike strip out into Natsu's lane.

Natsu grinned, "Okay, Gajeel, top this."

Black Steel raised an eyebrow, "Whatcha' gonna do now, flamer?"

Just meters away from the spikes, Natsu hit the brakes and wheeled 180 degrees around them, going into reverse immediately to speed up again. Now he was ahead of Gajeel, but the roadblock was still there.

Natsu accelerated his Corvette, still going in reverse, and glared at the roadblock, "Outta my way, assholes!"

The Corvette, going 100mph in reverse, rammed into the two barricading cars and made them skid back as Natsu forced his way through, then wheeled around 180 degrees again to drive straight once more.

Gajeel, Sol, and Juvia followed him through the opening, hot on his tail.

Juvia smiled a little, "That Natsu guy's just crazy."

"Still got the skills, eh? Gee-hee!" Gajeel cackled and roared ahead so he was right behind Natsu's Corvette.

Now at the halfway point, the four racers reached the desert and did a quick u-turn, then bolted back onto the other side of the highway to head for home.

Natsu saw Gajeel in his side mirror as Black Steel attempted to pull up beside him. He grinned, "How does that dust taste, you smartass?"

But Gajeel was far from beat, as he pulled up to Natsu's side with a crazy laugh, "Just because you can still drive doesn't mean you're gonna beat me, punk!"

They kept weaving around through traffic, all four cars exceeding 120mph. The landscape passed as a blur, the other cars just obstacles to get around.

Sol and Juvia were just trying to keep up with the two guys in the Corvette and the Barracuda at this point. Natsu and Gajeel weren't running against them anymore- it was their race now.

Finally, they peeled off the highway and were now just a quarter mile away from the finish line.

Gajeel glanced at Natsu, who was still driving beside him, "You remember the timing, flamer? Don't go early and make it easy for me."

Natsu knew what he was doing. The Corvette's speed kept piling up, until he was going 150mph.

When the two cars were just over 150 meters away from the finish, Natsu and Gajeel hit the NOS and steadied themselves as the Corvette and Barracuda hit an insane 185mph. They were both neck and neck the whole time.

They didn't let up until they crossed the line- perfectly in sync.

Their cars swerved and slowed to a stop, then waited as Sol and Juvia finished with the woman coming in 3rd, and the french man in 4th. Juvia didn't seem particularly upset, but Sol was swearing in french and hitting his dashboard.

The crowd cheered as Natsu climbed out of his Corvette, but the teen was staring at his old Barracuda, saying nothing until Gajeel got out and walked over to him.

The people got quiet as the two men faced each other, neither so much as blinking at the other.

Gajeel didn't tear his eyes away from Natsu as he called over his shoulder, "Hey, Sue! What'd that ending look like to you?"

She shook her head, quite amazed for once, "You two came in at exactly the same time. Tie race, no doubt."

Black Steel nodded to himself for a few seconds, apparently confirming something.

Then he whipped out a handgun from his back pocket, pointing it at the other teen's head.

But Natsu knew Gajeel and had come prepared. Almost at the same time, he whipped out his own gun and pointed it sideways at Black Steel's face.

The people backed up, uncertain if someone was really going to shoot.

Then Gajeel cracked a grin and started laughing.

"Gee-heehehahahaha!"

Black Steel put the gun away and walked over, thumping Natsu on the shoulder with a fierce grin of delight, "This kid's still got it!"

"Damn right, I do." Natsu smirked back and gave his rival a fist bump, "What, you didn't think I was gonna pussy out after ditching L.A., didja?"

"With the exit you made? Hell no! I just didn't know if I was gonna be too good for ya. Gee-hee!" Gajeel cackled.

Juvia got out of her car and walked up, "So, you do know him. I thought as much."

Natsu grinned, "Yeah, I ran with this guy for what, six, seven years?"

"Crazy long time, that's about right." Gajeel confirmed, then shook his head, "Damn, brother, I didn't think you'd be coming back to town. Not after what happened."

"What happened?" Sue asked, voicing the crowd's curiosity.

Black Steel glanced at Natsu, who nodded, then raised his voice so everyone could hear, "Right, so this was when we were running things on the other side of town. We had a street race about two years back, cops showed up to bust our sorry asses. His girlfriend got wrecked and died, made things a total mess for us."

Gajeel grinned and pointed at Natsu, "He actually busted up his car, too, but you wouldn't believe this. Same night as the accident, this man _burns down _a _police station, _then wrecks two cops going 80 plus on the highway."

The crowd whistled and yelled approval, to which Gajeel poured it on, "Oh, this punk's a hardcore street racer. We were running out there just now, he rams the back of his Corvette into two of the jackasses who tried to barricade us!"

Now the crowd was roaring like Natsu was their new celebrity.

He grinned, familiar with the attention and surprised as he realized how much he'd missed it.

Sue had split up the prize money for them, but Gajeel took both halves and slapped them into Natsu's hand, "Imma let you have that since that was one hell of a race, punk."

Natsu grinned and went through the hundred dollar bills, causing Gajeel to laugh, "Look at this man playing with his money! Yeah, you like that, huh?"

The crowd laughed as well, up until Natsu flipped out 2 grande and sent it back to Gajeel with a smirk, "Go buy yourself a beer, man."

Gajeel held up the cash and shouted, "Y'all see this? This is what bros before hoes means, ya got that?!"

Natsu smirked as the crowd cheered again, then held out a fist to Gajeel, "Hey, man, Imma head home and start fixin' the back end of that 'Vette. I'll see you around."

Black Steel connected, "Sure. Hey, meet up with me down at the old place tomorrow, alright? Catch up a little."

"You got it." Natsu nodded and got back into his car, then pulled away to the back of the crowd.

Lucy was waiting and got in quickly, then the Corvette left the Phantom racers to talk over the latest big thing.

**/**

Lucy kept glancing at Natsu as they headed home, until he finally looked back, "What?"

"Nothing." she smiled, "It's just…you seem really happy for the first time since I met you. So, you and Gajeel are pretty good friends, huh?"

"Rival would be a better word." Natsu admitted, "He's alright most of the time, but sometimes he can be a real pain in my ass. But you know…"

Lucy tilted her head curiously, "Know what?"

He licked his lips and shook his head slightly, "When you're racing someone who's just as good as you are, it doesn't matter if he annoys the hell outta you. You both take something off of the streets you run."

"What is that?" she asked.

"Respect." Natsu said, glancing at her with a grin.

Lucy smiled again, nodding her head a little, "You know, street boy? You're not that bad."

Natsu smirked, "Why's that?"

"Because out of all the guys I've seen driving out there, you're the only one who seems to actually do it right." Lucy murmured, "You don't do it for money, or girls, or drugs…you do it for the people you care about."

"Yeah…" he trailed off and sighed, "Gajeel used to be like that. We always had each other's back, no matter what happened. Did I tell you a couple of us stopped a gang from beating him down? These guys were pissed they lost their cars to us and tried to take it out on Gajeel. Me, Gray, and Elfman helped him kick their asses outta town. It was great."

Natsu stopped the car at a red light and stared off into the dark ahead for a bit, "Things were better back then. After it all went sour two years ago and I ditched, it seems that everyone just broke apart."

Lucy watched him intently, not missing anything.

"I'll help you with this job." Natsu fixed Lucy with a serious look, "But I'm doing this so I can put my family back together. They've been broken apart for too long and it's time I set things right. For what it's worth, Lucy, I hope this keeps your family together, too."

Lucy kept looking at him, then unclipped her seatbelt and leaned over with a whisper, "That's very sweet of you…"

She kissed him softly, resting a hand on his chest. Natsu was a little hesitant at first, but he responded slowly.

Lucy pulled away, causing him to frown a little, "Why'd you stop?"

"Green light, silly." she said happily.

"Big freaking deal." Natsu held the wheel with his left hand and used his right arm to pull Lucy into his lap, where he kept kissing her as they drove down the road.

Lucy separated after a bit and giggled, "Aren't you afraid we might crash?"

"Nah…" he muttered before kissing her again, his right hand holding onto her hip as he brought the girl closer. Lucy's eyes fluttered shut and her hands latched onto his collar to pull him in, keeping their lips locked as the Corvette sped off to the Heartfilia mansion.


	6. Double-Cross

**I'm back! I'll be updating like crazy for the next few days! Dragonearth, The Outcast Dragon King, as well as Fast and Fiery will all get some serious work done on them now! I'm too busy writing to put in much more of a summary, so-**

**As always, please review and thanks for reading!**

_Double-Cross_

Lucy woke up to her alarm clock, but hit the "Off" button and snuggled into her bed rebelliously. It was only 8:00. She just wanted to sleep a little longer.

"Miss Lucy?"

Virgo's voice made the girl mumble into her pillow, "What is it?"

The maid set down a tray with tea and biscuits, "I thought you should know that Master Natsu has been in the garage since 5:00. I understand he's repairing his vehicle, but your father is going to be home in half and hour, and I do believe the noise coming from the garage might prove to be a nuisance to him."

Lucy's eyes flashed open wide. She gulped, "Uh-oh."

Virgo turned to her charge with a questioning look, "Is something the matter, Miss?"

"I...may have forgotten to tell my father Natsu was staying here." she managed, then smacked her forehead, "Oh, if he pulls up and sees Natsu working in the garage on that car..."

Virgo heard a car horn and glanced out the window, "Oh, it would appear he's arrived early."

"NO!" Lucy shrieked and flew from her bed, out of the room, and down the stairs, scrambling to get to the garage in time.

Virgo smiled, "Works every time."

**/**

Natsu tossed his sweaty shirt and took a swig of water from a canteen as he enjoyed a brief break in reparations on his Corvette. It was coming along nicely, but it would be a few hours yet until he was satisfied with his work. Luckily, the back end hadn't been as badly damaged as he'd feared from smashing into the police car barricade.

_This thing's got some resistance to it, _he thought with satisfaction.

"Natsu!"

He glanced back and stared as Lucy ran up, then grabbed his arm and tugged, "We have to hide you!"

"Whoa, what the heck?" Natsu protested as he was dragged away from his Corvette.

"My dad's here and if he sees you, he's going to kill us!"

His eyes got wide, "Wait, you didn't tell him I was staying here?!"

"No! Oh, man, I totally forgot!" Lucy wailed, searching desperately for someplace to hide.

Natsu got free of her grip and strode over to his car.

"You can't leave! He'll see you!" she said in a panicky tone, grabbing him and trying to pull him in the opposite direction.

He tried to pull back, "Just trust me, okay?!"

Suddenly, the garage door opened. They froze in place.

And in walked...

Lucy frowned, "Erza? I thought my dad was..."

Erza stared at them in surprise, "Well...good morning. You two are getting along better than I expected."

Natsu coughed, "Um, Lucy, you can..you know..let go now."

Lucy blinked, then assessed the situation.

Natsu, sweaty and shirtless. Ok. Admittedly, that looked pretty hot to her.

Now she looked at herself and realized her true outward appearance. Lucy, having just left her room in a panic, was still wearing what she went to bed in.

And that wasn't much. Her outfit consisted of a white tank top that stopped at the middle of her stomach, with the words, "Bad Girl" on the front, and a pair of pink underwear. No bra. Not to mention the fact that she was clinging to Natsu's arm and standing pretty close to him.

Erza was staring at them with a face as crimson as her hair. God knows what she was envisioning.

Lucy blushed furiously and stammered, "E-Erza, th-this is definitely not what it looks like!"

"Well, don't let me interrupt...whatever it is you two are doing." Erza said, still crimson and looking very uncomfortable. She pointed awkwardly at the door, "I'll be inside...meet up with me when you're done with..." The woman trailed off and just walked inside the house and out of the garage.

Lucy groaned, "Aw, I should've checked to see if it was really my dad..."

"If it was your dad, I'm pretty sure I would've been a dead man." Natsu pointed out, "Or at the very least, outta this house."

She shook her head, "Well, you need to go get cleaned up, because he'll be here later. After that, aren't you meeting up with Gajeel?"

He shrugged, "That's the plan."

Lucy looked herself over and flushed pink again, "I can't believe Erza thought that we..."

Natsu grinned, "In her defense, you _do _look pretty hot. I can see why she'd think something was going on."

Lucy puffed up a cheek indignantly, but smirked in response, "Yeah, you wish she were right, don't you?"

"I won't deny it." he chuckled.

"Really?" she asked, a little surprised.

Natsu shrugged, "Nope. Seriously, you look great."

Lucy stared at him for a bit, judging his sincerity, then glanced away and brushed her hair to the side self-consciously, "I just got out of bed. I'm a mess."

"You're fine. It's actually kinda cute when your hair's all messy." he complimented.

She looked back at him with a faint smile, "You think so?"

Natsu nodded, "Yeah. I wouldn't lie to you about stuff like that."

"Quite the sweet talker, aren't you?" Lucy giggled, "Or is this just because you enjoyed kissing me last night in the car?"

"Maybe a little of both." he admitted, but it made her laugh and lean up a little to kiss him.

It was fairly brief, though. Lucy pulled back and wrinkled her nose, "You smell."

Natsu took a deep breath and almost reeled back, "Wow, you're right. How did I miss that?"

"Maybe you were too busy talking with me to notice?" she asked hopefully.

He grinned again, "Probably. I'll go take a shower and meet you and Erza in a moment."

Lucy nodded, "Okay. Bye." She started walking to the door, but just before she got there, two strong arms weaved around her waist.

Natsu's breathed close to her ear, "Do you want to go take a drive tonight?"

"Depends." she whispered back, "Where are we going?"

"Wherever you want, Lucy." he murmured, then placed a small kiss on her cheek before letting her go and heading inside.

Lucy stood there for a few moments after, waiting for her stupidly huge smile and the giddy feeling in her chest to go away. If Erza saw her like that, there'd be no excuse that could get her out of it.

**/**

After Natsu got cleaned up and she got dressed, though, Erza still had a curious blush on her face.

"So..." the red head started as they sat down in Lucy's room, "You two...what's going on?"

Natsu shrugged, "I raced last night. That went pretty well. Tied for first with Black Steel, by the way. And-"

"While I'm thrilled to hear that, Natsu, stop avoiding the question." Erza stopped him and raised an eyebrow at Lucy, "Well? Are you two...?"

Lucy bit her lip and glanced at Natsu shyly. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and started, "Well...it's like...um..."

"Thinking about it." Lucy offered, but didn't have the nerve to look at either of them as she said it.

Natsu pointed at her, "What she said."

"Uh-huh." Erza muttered doubtfully, "So you two being in the garage, half-naked, and all clingy is a normal thing?"

"That really wasn't what it looked like." Lucy said hurriedly, "It was just, I thought the car that pulled in was my dad's, so I was about to go hide Natsu somewhere."

Erza frowned, "Why?"

"Well..." she gulped, "I, ah...forgot to tell dad that Natsu was staying with us."

The red head smirked, "Lucy, I told him about the arrangement before Natsu even got into town."

Lucy blinked, "Huh?"

"I think the only thing your father would be concerned about is what you two looked like in the garage." Erza giggled, sounding for once like a girl and not a cop, "Oh, you should've seen the looks on your faces. Like a couple of kids who got caught doing something bad- so guilty!"

Lucy reddened and Natsu coughed discreetly, but Erza stopped their torment and got down to business:

"Okay, so you raced Black Steel. What's your situation now?"

Natsu clasped his hands together in front of him, "I'm meeting up with him again today. Gonna talk a little about how Phantom runs. I'm pretty sure that means they'll be working a job soon, so I can try and get in with that."

"What about the other Phantom members?" Erza asked.

"They trust me." he said confidently, "I got their respect last night. They won't be a problem."

She nodded in satisfaction, "And Jose? Anything on him?"

"Not yet." Lucy admitted, "But if we really are meeting to discuss a job, then it's possible Jose will brief us on what we're doing."

Erza chewed her lip thoughtfully, "Okay. That's good news so far, but remember to be careful. If you slip up even once with Jose, he'll kill you. There can be no mistakes. Got that, Natsu?"

He raised an eyebrow, "Why are you telling me that?"

"Because I know you." she said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Natsu knew better than to argue, "I'll be careful."

"Good." Erza smiled and stood up, "Then I'll go inform Sieg on your progress. Bye, you two. Oh, Natsu? Can I have a quick word with you outside?"

**/**

Erza stopped him just outside of Lucy's room and made sure the door was closed before murmuring, "Look, I'm glad that you and Lucy are getting along so well, but don't let Phantom find anything they can use to exploit you. If you start working with them and they find out you and Lucy are close, they might threaten her to control you. They've done things like that before."

"Got it. Don't hit on Lucy when Phantom's watching. No problem." Natsu agreed.

She smiled, "Aren't you glad I convinced you to come back?"

"You strong-armed me into it." he corrected, "But so far, it's okay, I'll give you that."

Erza chuckled, "See you around. Don't get killed."

With that, she walked off. Once the cop was out of earshot, Natsu sighed and opened up Lucy's bedroom door.

Lucy almost fell out on the floor, squeaking in surprise. She looked up at Natsu with a slightly guilty expression, "Um...hi."

"You were listening." he said. It wasn't a question.

"I was curious." she explained, but Natsu smirked.

"What were you hoping to hear?" he asked.

Lucy tried to shrug it off, "I just wanted to know what you were talking about."

Natsu gave her a sideways glance, "After she asked to talk with me alone? You so wanted to know if I was gonna say something about you."

"No!" she denied immediately, but Natsu's raised eyebrow caused her to look away and mutter, "Well...maybe a little."

He laughed, which caused her to pout, "Stop teasing me!"

Natsu grinned and ran downstairs, calling over his shoulder, "Hurry up! We need to go meet up with Gajeel!"

"What about your car?" Lucy asked, "Doesn't it still need repairs?"

"It's fine." he shrugged, "I can fix up the rest at Gajeel's place."

Lucy watched him run to the garage with a sigh.

_Don't hit on Lucy when Phantom's watching. No problem, _Lucy thought back on what Natsu had said. A frown found its way onto her face. _Not quite what I wanted to hear, but...at least it's a start._

She shook her head and chased after Natsu, clearing the train of thought from her mind. She'd think about it later. Maybe when they went driving.

**/\/\/\/\/\**

They pulled up to a large garage overlooking the coast, where a bunch of cars were lined up and people were all over the place. Most were partying, enjoying the nearby Pacific Ocean with a cold beverage, while some others worked on their cars.

Natsu spotted Gajeel working on the underside of a Mustang and glanced at Lucy, "Look, whatever happens, just follow my lead, okay?"

Lucy nodded, "Okay."

They walked over and stopped a few feet away, where Natsu cleared his throat, "Man, since when has this place been so busy?"

Gajeel rolled out from under the Mustang, blinking as he saw them before he grinned and got up to give Natsu a fist bump, "Been like this for a while. Once I hit the high end of Phantom, they started bringing their cars down here. Before I knew it, chicks followed, and now I run a party spot every freakin' day."

"That sounds crazy." Lucy remarked, "Must mean you get a lot of business, huh?"

Gajeel glanced at her in question, "Pretty much...You're that chick who was hanging with Sue...uh..."

"Oh, right, you two don't know each other." Natsu remembered, then pointed from one to the other, "Gajeel, meet Lucy. She helped me find out about that race last night."

"Well, blondie, looks like I got somethin' to thank you for." Gajeel grinned as he shook her hand, "Can I get you a drink? You guys thirsty, or what?"

Lucy shook her head, "Maybe later. I should've brought my swimsuit, though. The water looks great."

Now Gajeel looked at Natsu pointedly, "Man, why didn't you tell her my garage was on the water?"

"I didn't know you were throwing a party." he held up his hands in surrender.

Black Steel shrugged, "Meh, whatever. You can go swimming another day, anyways. We got stuff to talk about." He glanced behind Natsu to the Corvette, where some damage was still visible from his crash into the cops. Gajeel glanced over his shoulder and yelled, "Hey, Sue! Boze!"

The two came out from behind a truck they were working on and walked over.

Sue smiled at the guests, "Hey, guys. What's up, Gajeel?"

Gajeel pointed to the Corvette, "Looks like flamer here already started, but fix up the rest of that rear end there, will ya?"

"Sure." Boze grunted.

Natsu tossed him the keys and grinned, "Don't scratch the paintwork."

"Speaking of which, where's the flames, man?" Gajeel asked.

Natsu shrugged, "It was a last minute deal. I won that car last month and drove it straight into L.A. like three days ago? I met Lucy pretty quick and found out about the race, but I didn't have the time to add the paintwork. I just prepped it to run."

Gajeel whistled, "And run it did. Alright, well just leave that to them. Got it guys? Flames on the side, red, yellow, orange, blend it up, alright?"

Sue grinned, "Got it, boss. We'll have it looking like a million bucks by the end of the day."

"Oh, damn, don't I wish I knew what that really looked like." Natsu sighed.

"Gee-hee. Still daydreaming about cold, hard cash, eh?" Gajeel laughed.

Natsu nodded, "I'm pretty sure no one in this city would turn down a million dollars. You could buy some serious machinery with that."

Gajeel threw an arm each around Natsu and Lucy's shoulders and led them inside, "Oh, we got some serious machinery, now. This place ain't even close to the old one. It's in a totally different league. Check it out, man? Hydraulic systems, car lifts, plasma cutters...we got it all, punk."

"Wow, you're way better off than we were a few years back." Natsu remarked.

"You know it." Gajeel agreed, "Since Phantom started running the streets, I've been winning race after race and just building up. Jose might run the underworld, but he wouldn't have such damn good cars without me. All the rides his best guys run are projects I've worked on."

Lucy offered an impressed look, "Wow. I don't really know as much about cars as you two, but I know the Element Four rides are seriously fast. You made them all?"

"Not made, but I added on the modifications that make them such beasts." Gajeel corrected, then smirked, "You wanna know about cars, blondie?"

She shrugged, "I only just got into street racing a little bit ago, but I've never raced myself. I don't even have a car right now, so Natsu's sort of...chauffeuring me around town."

Gajeel grinned darkly at Natsu, "What, you're her bitch, or something?"

Natsu rolled his eyes, "Dude, I ain't anyone's bitch. I owe her for showing me where you guys were running is all."

"And I have to thank her for that, anyways." Gajeel reminded himself, "Let's head inside and I'll tell you guys a little about what I do here. Maybe we can set up a deal."

**/**

They headed upstairs to a lounge area in the garage, where Gajeel pulled three beers out of a mini fridge and sat them down at a couch.

He took a swig and gulped it down, then muttered, "So, listen, Natsu. Things in Phantom aren't running so smooth right now. Jose business ain't working out like it used to. The cops went and fucked up one of his biggest exports and took down his best clients at the same time just a month ago. Now that everything's gone to shit, he's aiming for something big."

"What's he shooting for?" Natsu asked, sipping his drink.

Gajeel shrugged, "Some big time railroad guy called Heartfilia."

Lucy almost choked on her drink, but luckily, Gajeel didn't notice and went on, "This guy basically runs the whole network of trains coming in and out of L.A. The thing is, he was working with us. Jose paid him to export drugs and import the money. He always got a good share, and now he's risen up to the big leagues. But since he became the big guy on top, he's gotten real demanding in the payments. He literally sent Jose a note saying that he wouldn't run more shit for him unless he got a 60% cut. That was the last straw for Jose."

Natsu flashed a quick glance at Lucy before turning back to Gajeel, "So what's the plan?"

"Well, Jose's gonna strip all the cash he ever gave him over the last two years. That's a _lot_ of money. We're talking double-digit millions, brother."

Lucy gulped down more of her drink and muttered, "How could he be so greedy that he's demanding more? This guy sounds like an idiot."

Natsu frowned slightly at that, but Gajeel chuckled, "Oh, he's a dumbass alright, but he's not my priority. That's why I need to ask you something, Natsu."

"Sure." he replied.

"Jose's been running these streets for too long. He's put the whole of L.A. to shit. You can't even street race anymore without giving him a cut of your winnings. Like the prize money we split yesterday? That was half of what it would have been for a big time race like that. The other half went to Jose." Gajeel muttered.

Natsu nodded, "Yeah, I thought it was kinda low, especially since you were driving. But if he runs the underworld, no one's gonna try and argue against it, huh?"

"I am." Gajeel told them, "If Jose doesn't pull this thing against Heartfilia, he's done for anyways. My garage work would be his only decent source of income for the gang. Now, he'd probably try and give me the same deal he gave Heartfilia, but I'm not such a gullible bitch, so I ain't going down that road. But if he does take all that cash from Heartfilia, then I've got a plan cooked up to get him out of L.A."

Natsu and Lucy stared at him. This was not how they had been expecting the conversation to go. Natsu broke the uneasy silence, "You're gonna rip him off of all Heartfilia's money?"

"Think about it, man!" Black Steel set his beer down and clasped his hands, "Jose turned L.A. into an anarchy. Now I don't know about you, but I want my streets back the way they were before, where I can race and do all the stupid shit I want without boss man demanding a cut of my work. The moment I joined Phantom, my plan was to tear him down. Wendy was against it. She didn't want to get involved in this shit, but I've gotta put things right."

Lucy flashed an uneasy glance at Natsu, then asked, "I kept hearing around the streets that you killed some police agents who tried to get into Phantom. What was that about?"

Gajeel sighed, "Yeah, that's the messy side of my plan. Thing is, I have to keep Jose thinking I'm loyal to him. He's damn brutal, and he don't take no for an answer. Either you're with him, or you're against him, and those who go against him head on don't last very long."

"Still..." Natsu trailed off, then started again, "I agree Jose needs to be taken down, but unless you have a solid plan-"

"I'm working on it." Gajeel interrupted, "Just trust me, man. I got this. After I work out a few more kinks, we'll be set. One thing I can sort out right now, if you'll let me: We need at least one more driver. You down?"

Natsu was quiet for a bit, then nodded, "If you can put something together, I'll ride with you. You know that."

Gajeel grinned, "Damn, this'll be just like the good ol' days when we went jackin' people's cars with the guys from Fairy Tail...speaking of which, they've got a race going on tomorrow night. I'm gonna pop in and say hi, so why don't you bring in your Corvette and have a little fun? It's just drag racing, I think."

"That sounds good. I need a little fun anyway with all this conspiracy shit going on." Natsu said as he took another sip of his drink.

"And you, blondie?" Black Steel glanced at Lucy, "You wanna race?"

Lucy shook her head, "I've never done it before. I'll lose."

Gajeel snorted, "That's what happens to pretty much every first-timer. You wanna know what makes you different from most, though?"

"What?" she asked.

He smirked, "Because you're not a cocky piece of shit. You keep that cool head, girl, and you might just win. Tell ya what, come see this."

**/**

Gajeel got up and led them downstairs again, then walked to a lot behind his garage where a significant number of cars were parked. He went through them, glancing from side to side until he saw one he liked and grinned.

"A newbie like you ain't ready to drive monsters like my Barracuda or flamer's Corvette, but ya gotta start somewhere. This'll do the trick." he pointed to a silver Ford ST.

Lucy blinked, "Huh?"

Gajeel rolled his eyes, "Blondie, it's yours. If you're gonna run with me and the others on these streets, you're gonna run one of the cars I got. Especially since you don't know much about cars, right? I can spare this one- I'm not gonna race in it anyway. It was just something I had Sue and Boze work on so they could get better with mechanics. It won't beat a Mustang, but it'll get you through some easy races."

"I can really have this?" Lucy asked incredulously, looking the car over with gleaming eyes.

Natsu grinned, "Thanks man. Guess I better go teach her how to race this thing. I haven't seen anyone wreck in a drag yet, but there's always a first time."

"Yeah!" Gajeel cackled and gave his rival a fist bump, "I'll tell ya when Jose gets a new job set up. You probably need the money, huh?"

"If we're really gonna rip him off, we'll need his trust more than money." Natsu remarked, "We're aiming for millions, right?"

Gajeel nodded, "That's right, punk. Just think- we pull off this big score, man, you might even get to buy a Bugatti."

Natsu laughed, "Hells yeah!"

**/\/\/\/\/\**

They said goodbye to Gajeel, who told them to pick up the finished Corvette later that night. Natsu decided to drive them home in Lucy's new Ford, since he was sure she was definitely pretending she had a cool head. He didn't think she was okay to drive right then.

Once they were a few streets away from the garage, Natsu chanced a concerned look at her, "You okay?"

Lucy was staring out the window, and shook her head without looking back, "I can't believe him…I mean, my dad has sort of had this obsession with his business ever since my mom passed away, but…I never thought he'd…"

"Money can make people do some crazy things, Lucy." Natsu said, "The best we can do now is try and make sure your dad stays out of the line of fire."

"What came over him to do this?" she demanded, "How could he be so _stupid?!" _

Natsu shrugged, "I ask myself the same thing whenever I think about why my dad left. There's no answer to it unless he tells you himself."

Lucy rubbed her forehead stressfully, "And I can't even do that…If we tell him we know what he's done…I'm not sure he won't use his money to keep us quiet."

"Then we'll tell Erza and Sieg." he muttered, "They can investigate it and figure out how to deal with him."

She frowned, "I can't go behind my dad's back like that. What kind of daughter would I be?"

"_You _won't. I'll do it." Natsu decided.

Lucy sighed, "Okay…so now what? Are we really going to run with Gajeel?"

"I'm not sure." he admitted, "He's playing a dangerous game. I can see why Wendy left now. If he screws up even once, Jose'll kill 'em. But…this might be our chance to bust that bastard. I'll see what Gajeel cooks up, then decide."

Lucy raised an eyebrow, "What, I don't get to decide if it's a good idea or not?"

"You're not getting involved with that." Natsu said firmly, "You're not even a real cop, how do you expect to get through stealing from a drug lord like Jose? No, you leave that bit to me and Gajeel."

"You won't tell Erza this, will you?" she asked, suddenly suspicious, "Natsu, look at me."

"I'm driving. That's not safe." he excused.

"Natsu. _Look at me._"

Natsu sighed in exasperation and pulled over into an empty parking lot, then looked at the blonde.

Lucy was staring at him with an intensity that was uncomfortable, "I want to know something. If you decide to pull this job with Gajeel, are you still going to finish the work Erza asked you to do? Or are you going to disappear again with your old friends and all of my dad's money?"

"Are you seriously asking me that right now?" he muttered.

"I want to know." she said simply.

Natsu leaned his head back and stared at the ceiling of the car, "Lucy, whatever way this goes, I'm going to have to disappear afterwards. Erza's job was just an excuse to get me back into the cop's jurisdiction again."

Lucy frowned, "That's a lie. Erza said-"

"-Erza's not in charge." he interrupted, "Neither is Siegrain. Come on, you don't actually think they'd hire a fugitive like me to bust a drug lord, do you? Then just hand me my freedom once it was all over? This isn't a movie, Lucy. They'll toss me in a cell right next to Jose once this ends, mark my words."

That gave Lucy pause, but only for a little while, "So…given a choice, you'd run with Gajeel. I should've known…I'd better call Erza and tell her to book the next flight out of the U.S. Clearly, you need to leave before you get into more trouble."

Natsu flashed her a glare, "It's not that simple anymore, Lucy. I can't just leave again. My friends would never forgive me if I ran out twice. I've got to stay."

"And you'll end up robbing Jose who happens to be robbing my dad." Lucy said sharply, "Just how is that any different from stealing my dad's money directly?"

"Oh, my GOD, how the hell should I know?" Natsu finally snapped, making her flinch. He kept going on, "I don't know what the hell I'm supposed to do, I don't know which side to take, fuck, Lucy, I don't even know if I'm going to make it out of this! I look at my options, and most end in either death or life in prison!"

Lucy looked away from him and put a hand over her mouth. She must have been trying not to cry, but her eyes were still glistening with moisture.

Natsu rubbed his eyes and sighed, "Look, just…You're trying to burn me here, and I don't even know what I should do. I'm supposed to race, not do all this thinking. That's Erza or Siegrain's job, and for all I know, they're probably trying to figure out how to put me in jail when all this is over."

"Erza won't do that." Lucy murmured, "She's your friend. She'll find a way to keep you safe."

"I damn near guarantee you Siegrain isn't that way." he remarked, "He was all for throwing me in a cell the moment I crossed the border, I'm telling ya."

Lucy bit her lip, "And what about me?" She looked at Natsu nervously, "Where do I fit in this equation?"

Natsu shook his head, "Hopefully, not in the body bag next to mine."

He put the car in drive and left, not another word spoken.


	7. Nightmare

**Okay, this is mostly a NaLu chapter, but I'm going to show who the main rival will be for THAT relationship. Remember, it's not for sure that Natsu will end up with Lucy, OR the rival. Even I haven't decided. **

**As always, please review and thanks for reading!**

_Chapter 7: Nightmare_

When Natsu and Lucy arrived back at the mansion, a black limo was in the driveway.

Lucy sighed, "My dad's home…"

Natsu flashed a look at her, "You don't mention a word Gajeel told us, okay? It'll blow our cover and we'd be dead meat for sure."

"I know, I know." she muttered and got out of the car.

Virgo was waiting for them. She bowed and motioned to the door, "Master Jude is waiting in the dining hall, Miss Lucy, Master Natsu."

**/**

Jude Heartfilia was eating at the end of an extravagant table in the dining hall.

Natsu walked into the room behind Lucy and got his first look at her dad. He could see how they were related- what, with the blonde hair, but when the middle-aged man started talking, Natsu realized that Jude and Lucy's personalities were far different.

Jude looked up as they walked in, swallowing a bite of salad before he nodded to them, "Lucy. I expect this man is Natsu Dragneel? The one Erza hired?"

"Yes, father." Lucy's tone suddenly became very formal, "Natsu arrived just the other day-"

"Yes, yes, I'm aware of that." the man dismissed, "Erza informed me of this shortly before he came here. So, Mr. Dragneel," He offered Natsu a seat a short ways away from his, "Are you hungry?"

Natsu shook his head politely, "No, sir. Thank you, though. Just wondering, what did Erza tell you?"

Jude took another bite of salad, "She informed me that the Phantom thugs were going to be a threat to my business and that for the safety of my household, it would be best to keep you here while you investigated. I have, however, hired some bodyguards should I be targeted while you are out."

Natsu didn't really like how he was talking as if only his safety mattered. He found a way to mildly point out that fact, "And Lucy, as well?"

Jude waved his hand dismissively, "Yes, yes, of course."

At this point, Natsu couldn't decide if the man was simply being curt because he didn't know the teenager very well, or if he just flat out didn't care what happened to his daughter. He had a nasty suspicion it was the latter, but had the sense to avoid voicing his opinion of that particular hunch.

"Then I think I'm done here. I'll be going out for a bit, sir." Natsu turned and walked away, but Jude stopped him.

"Son, I must also reinforce a rule in my household: Unless her life happens to come into jeopardy, keep your hands off of my daughter."

Natsu looked over his shoulder with narrowed eyes. He _really _didn't like that.

Lucy opened her mouth to protest, but Jude shot her a stern look that made her remain quiet. He grunted, "She is likely already spoken for, should things go as planned. Which I expect they will."

"Will that be all, sir?" Natsu asked with dark softness.

Jude didn't seem to catch the danger in his voice and nodded, then returned to his salad, "You may go."

Natsu strode out of the dining hall without another word, although he earned a sympathetic look from Virgo. That didn't help very much.

**/\/\/\/\/\**

Erza was more than a little surprised to find Natsu standing in front of her door in the middle of the day.

"Natsu! What are you doing here? You can't be seen-"

"Do you have a firing range somewhere?" he interrupted.

She blinked, "Um..well, yes. But why-"

"Good. I need to shoot something." Natsu muttered.

**/**

**BANG! BANG! BANG!**

Natsu unloaded the whole clip of a Desert Eagle Erza had brought with them. Every single bullet he'd fired so far had hit its mark, dead center in the target's head.

Erza had an eyebrow raised, impressed, but Siegrain, who had joined them, whistled and glanced at the teen with genuine respect.

"Natsu. Remind me never to piss you off."

Natsu glanced back at Erza, "Do you have something a little more…fun?"

Erza promptly pulled out an M16 from…well, only god knows where she kept those guns. It puzzled all of her friends.

**BRATATATATATATATATATAT!**

Empty shells cascaded to the ground as Natsu let the whole magazine go. What was left of the target was…well…a mess, to say the least.

"Natsu, I think you killed that one with the first three shots." Erza managed, "But was putting another 20 rounds in it really necessary?"

"Sorry, I just…" he sighed and put the machine gun down, "I'm frustrated. I just NEED to kill something right now. You ever get that feeling?"

Erza chewed her lip thoughtfully and nodded, "I do, although I usually play with a beat up car and some kind of RPG."

"I think both of you are a danger to society." Siegrain decided.

"Well, you're not wrong." Natsu muttered.

"Alright, really, what's the matter?" Erza asked.

Natsu shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck, "I met Lucy's dad earlier. He's…"

"He's what?" Siegrain raised an eyebrow in expectation.

The teen cracked his knuckled and rolled his eyes, "Let's start with stupid, cocky, a total prick, and throw in jackass while we're at it. Oh, actually, take jackass away, that was too good a movie to compare with that blonde bastard."

Erza blinked, "Wow. All that after one meeting?"

Natsu threw an empty shell to the side, "He basically decided he became god and declared I was not allowed to even TOUCH his daughter."

Now Erza understood, "Ah, that's what this is about. I should've guessed as much. It's unlike you to judge someone so harshly after knowing them for only a short time."

Sieg glanced at Erza questioningly, "Ahem, I do believe he's of the opinion I am not friendly company."

Natsu pointed at Siegrain, "See, he gets it."

"That's not the point." Erza dismissed, "Look, Natsu, I know Jude can be…difficult…at times."

"Understatement of the century." he muttered.

"But." she gave him a warning look, "He _is _Lucy's father. And you are a guest in his house. You must respect his wishes."

Natsu stared at her.

Erza tilted her head, "What? Is something wrong?"

"…Erza…since when has respect ever been something you see when you look at me?" Natsu asked, "Do I look like I give a rat's ass what he thinks?"

Sieg gestured to the target, "I do believe if that could talk, it would disagree with you. Natsu, you _mangled _that target beyond recognition. It doesn't even look like a person anymore. It's more like…the headless horseman."

Natsu looked at the victim of his frustration. Holes all over and the head part of the paper target hanging by a thread.

Erza shook her head in exasperation, "You need to control that anger of yours."

"I am controlling it. I pictured the jerk's face on that target the whole time so I won't be tempted to kill him later." Natsu growled.

"If you kill her dad, I don't care how much of a prick he is, I doubt Lucy'll think good of you." Erza pointed out, "And I'll toss you in a cell before you can blink."

The teen rolled his eyes, "Thanks for the support."

"Look, Jude hardly even spends time at the mansion." Erza said helpfully, "You and Lucy can just pretend you don't care when he's around. When he's gone, you can…do whatever you two were doing in the garage earlier."

Natsu face-palmed. Siegrain's eyebrows shot up and a hint of a smirk found its way onto his face, "In the _garage? _Really?"

"Erza…seriously, that wasn't what was going on." Natsu grunted.

Erza was starting to smile, "Half-naked and all close up with her? Natsu, do tell me what you thought was-"

"Alright, I'm leaving. See you guys later." Natsu handed Erza her M16 back as he ditched the firing range. There was a distinct reddening on his face.

Siegrain watched him go and shook his head in amusement, "He really grows on you, doesn't he?"

Erza snickered, "Oh, you should've seen him when he was a kid. He was hysterical."

The man snorted and raised an eyebrow, "But the garage? Couldn't he have found someplace more…original?"

"Natsu is Natsu." Erza shrugged, "Plus I'm still not sure who's wearing the pants in that relationship. Lucy might like the garage, and Natsu had nothing to do with it."

"Well, if you find out, please, keep it to yourself." Siegrain chuckled and walked away.

Erza was tapping her chin thoughtfully, as if she were really considering who was dominant in Natsu and Lucy's supposed relationship.

As Sieg had pointed out, it was probably best if that opinion was kept to herself.

**/\/\/\/\/\**

Natsu drove back to the mansion and decided that rather than confront either of the two blondes who were the focus of his frustration, he'd check out the Ford ST Gajeel had given Lucy.

Gajeel was Gajeel, and he liked things that went BOOM. Natsu thought it best to make sure he hadn't strapped a bomb to the car and just forgotten about it. He had done that once. It wasn't pretty.

The explosion was cool, though.

Natsu was working underneath the car when he heard someone knock on the hood. He rolled out and found himself directly below Lucy.

Who happened to be wearing a skirt.

Natsu's face reddened and he forgot that she didn't know where he was yet. Male hormones were taking over. He briefly enjoyed the view presented to him. Briefly.

Lucy looked down and met his gaze for about half a second.

_"KYAAA!"_ Lucy shrieked and threw her hands down to block his view, then backed up quickly. Her face went bright crimson and she stammered, "Wh-what the hell?! What do you th-think you're doing?!"

"Ah…um…" Natsu sat up and scratched the back of his head, looking away from her as he tried to find an explanation.

"I…didn't know you were there." he said lamely, "Or that you changed…into a skirt…"

"Perv."

"I am not!"

She looked mad. With the embarrassed blush, however, the result was more cute than frightening. Her reddened cheek was puffed up, "Looking up a girl's skirt is perverted!"

"I wasn't looking up your skirt!"

Lucy's eyebrows shot up, "Oh? So what were you looking at, then? You weren't looking at the ceiling, because I was blocking any view you had of that!"

Natsu chewed his lip, "Let me think about that for a bit…"

"Just like a teenage boy." she muttered.

"Seriously, I had no idea you were there." Natsu said honestly, "I really didn't mean to…peek. Sorry."

She still looked a little annoyed, but sighed, "I forgive you. Just don't make a habit of it."

_Don't tempt me, _he thought to himself, then looked up at her, "So, what brings you here?"

Lucy actually smiled despite the situation just moments ago, "My dad said he'd be leaving again before the day's out. He's got a conference somewhere in Arizona, so he's flying out tonight."

"That's the best news I've heard all day." Natsu decided, then got up and lifted the hood of the Ford ST to check out the engine system. The underside was in the clear, so he was almost done with this little job.

Lucy walked over and leaned on the side of the car, giving him a long, sideways look.

He glanced at her, "What?"

She moved a little closer and sniffed, "You smell like gunpowder."

Natsu rolled his eyes, "Look, I had to shoot _something. _So I spent an hour or two with Erza and Sieg shooting targets and picturing…certain people on the front."

"That must have been fun." she said absently.

Natsu frowned, "What's with you?"

Lucy shook her head, "My dad…remember when he told you I was sort of spoken for?"

Natsu remembered and got a brief flicker of anger in his eyes. His reply was slow, "Ye~s…"

"Well, he's planning to marry me off to some guy who's the son of another major railroad businessman." she almost spat, "And apparently, I'm supposed to have a son so he can inherit both of the companies in who-knows-how many years."

The teenage boy returned to the car engine.

Lucy blinked, "Um…hello? Don't you care…?"

"Hold on, I'm hoping Gajeel left a bomb in here." Natsu explained, "I need to blow more shit up."

Lucy laughed. Then she noticed Natsu had not left the car engine to grin back. Her voice became slightly scared, "Wait…are you serious?"

Natsu scanned the engine for a while longer, then sagged his shoulders, "No. Looks like he didn't plan on blowing up this sucker."

Lucy sighed in relief, then set her elbow on the side of the car and placed her chin on her hand, appraising the boy in front of her. She asked again, "So…what do you think of my dad's plan?"

He snorted, "Guess. It should be pretty obvious."

"Yeah, but…" she smiled slightly and tilted her head so her hair fell to the side, "I want you to tell me."

Natsu must have not caught on to her tone and muttered, "I think it's bullshit."

Lucy's smile became wry, "No offense, but that wasn't really a romantic answer."

_Now _he got it. Natsu looked at her, noticing the slight smirk on her face. Lucy was trying to fix things after their earlier argument. She went on, "I think we should save the drive for when you get back your Corvette, but if you want, when my dad leaves we can go to the theater room and watch a movie…?"

"Thought you'd never ask." he grinned back.

Lucy giggled, "It's a date then~!"

**/\/\/\/\/\**

Jude Heartfilia couldn't have left sooner.

The moment he was back in his limousine and on the road, Lucy scrambled to her room and started fixing herself up. She made a point to clean her hair, teeth, and every inch of her body while she was in the bathroom. That took roughly half an hour.

Another thirty minutes was spent selecting something to wear. Lucy mulled over her options, then decided on a nice set of pink sweats and a white t-shirt with the words, "Heart Kreuz" on the front.

_Simple, but cute, _she thought happily. For most of her young life, she'd never really cared much what boys thought of her. Most men she met were guys her father had deemed worthy. All were swiftly rejected. Natsu was really the first boy she'd ever actually liked.

Being raised in a big house, practically a princess, Lucy was all for the idea of finding prince charming- even if prince charming drove a badass Corvette rather than a white stallion.

She looked herself over in a mirror one more time, spraying a little perfume as a finishing touch. Lucy smiled at her image and nodded, "Perfect!"

"Well, Miss Lucy, you look wonderful." Virgo walked in and looked her charge over, then raised an eyebrow, "Is so much glamour necessary for bed?"

Lucy laughed nervously, "Well, the thing is…I'm sort of meeting with Natsu in the theater room, so…"

"Ah." Virgo offered a smile, "I see. Good luck, then. Be sure to choose a horror film of some kind so you can get close to him."

Lucy blushed, "I-I gotta go!"

She ran out, leaving the maid to shake her head in amusement.

**/**

"I'm here!" Lucy gasped as she ran into the theater room.

Natsu looked back from where he was checking out a bunch of dvds. Lucy's heart did a little tap dance at the sight of him. He was wearing a black wife beater (Which emphasized his strong chest and perfect abs) and a pair of baggy, dark grey pants. To any teenage girl her age, Natsu looked _hot._

_And he's all mine for the night, _Lucy swore to herself. She hoped the ridiculously big smile on her face would go away. It was starting to hurt her cheeks.

"You've got a ton of movies, you know that?" Natsu told her.

She giggled, "What did you expect? So, didja pick one?"

Natsu motioned to the mass of dvds, "I could pick a dozen, but I couldn't decide which, so I figured I'd let you pick."

"Gladly." Lucy looked over the movies and thought about her options before pulling one out, "How about this?"

He blinked at her choice, _"'The Bourne Supremacy'?"_

Lucy frowned, "What, do you not like that movie?"

Natsu shook his head, "No, it's just…I thought for sure you'd pick a chick flik or something."

"Well, we're sort of dealing with a conspiracy of sorts, aren't we?" Lucy said brightly, "I figure maybe if we watch this, we'll get an idea of how to deal with our problem."

He grinned, "Works for me."

Lucy put dvd into a huge flatscreen tv, then pulled Natsu over to the leather seats set up in the back of the room. She wanted the ones in the corner- not because it was the best place to see the movie, just that it happened to be right under an air vent.

Lucy would be cold and in need of a cuddle within minutes.

The movie started and was great at first, with a mysterious assassin and a crooked businessman. Jason Bourne was dealing with his memory loss problem. For the first twenty minutes or so, Natsu and Lucy had a good time, sitting close and commenting about the scenes.

Up until the car crash scene where Marie was killed and wrecked off a bridge.

At that point, Natsu's eyes narrowed.

Lucy sighed, "I don't like how they killed her. It's not how things went in the book…Besides, you'd think Jason Bourne's life was hard enough."

"Well, life's a bitch." Natsu muttered.

Lucy glanced at him with surprise, until she realized he wasn't even watching the film anymore. He was staring at an empty wall to the side.

She paused the movie and tilted her head, "What's wrong?"

He was quiet for a bit, then shook his head, "Forget it…just play the movie."

She did, but she kept looking at him every few seconds. When Bourne decided not to burn his last photo of Marie in the movie, Lucy shifted closer and lay her head on Natsu's shoulder. Natsu's arm went around her waist and held her close. Lucy loved how warm it was being near him.

Even if he still seemed distant.

**/\/\/\/\/\**

All too soon, the movie ended and the credits rolled, but Natsu and Lucy didn't move.

Lucy glanced at his face, noting the half-closed dark eyes, as if he were deep in thought. Natsu was hardly paying attention. He probably hadn't even realized the movie was over. Lucy wanted to pout.

She hadn't gone through the whole beautifying process to be empty space.

Natsu finally snapped to attention when Lucy crawled into his lap. She sounded concerned, "What's the matter?"

He blinked, then looked away, "It's nothing…"

Lucy put a hand on his cheek and moved his face back to stare at her. She leaned in close, her voice a mere whisper, "You know, you told me you liked a girl who didn't keep anything from you…I haven't, so can you please tell me what's bothering you?"

Natsu shifted uncomfortably, "Lucy…I just don't want to talk about it right now."

She didn't get mad at the refusal to answer her question. Lucy moved in to kiss him, pressing her lips softly to his. Natsu's reaction was slow, but not hesitating. His arms gradually wrapped around her waist, shifting the girl so she was straddling him on the seat.

Lucy pulled away after a few minutes and searched his face, eventually deciding he just wasn't feeling it. She nestled her head in the crook of his neck and hugged him. Her voice murmured into his ear, "I'm here whenever you need me, okay?"

Natsu tilted his head slightly and rested his cheek on her soft, blonde hair. His reply was quiet, "Thanks…"

**/\/\/\/\/\**

_Natsu's car crashed again, sending the vehicle flipping sideways. It hit the side of a building and came to a stop, creaking from damage that couldn't be fixed. _

_He climbed out of the wrecked Barracuda, bleeding from scratches and stunned by the impact, but then he saw the massive crash where the other car had hit him. It was lying upside down with a huge dent in the side. Natsu could see someone lying unconscious in the devastated vehicle._

_Suddenly, a new car drove up._

_Natsu couldn't see who was driving, but he was certain he saw a faint smirk on their face before a hand came up and flicked on a lighter. The person tossed it out the window at the leaking gasoline and the helpless person inside the wrecked car. _

_Time slowed down._

_The person in the car blinked their eyes open, a beautiful sapphire blue. Their glow was fading fast, but the girl's lips moved slightly as he watched in horror. _

_"I love you…" Lisanna whispered for the last time._

**BANG!**

Natsu sat bolt upright in his bed, gasping in shock. The sound had been too real this time, too much for him to just dismiss as another nightmare.

The door to his room flew open and in rushed Lucy and Virgo, with a few other maids behind them. Natsu's dark eyes blazed over to them, wild and unfocused.

Lucy stopped and blocked Virgo and the other maids with her arm. She slowly walked over and stopped a few feet away from him, then asked cautiously, "Natsu?"

He stared at her, then muttered, "What the hell happened?"

She came a little closer and carefully held a hand out to him, "Natsu, give me the gun."

Natsu blinked and glanced down to his hand. Sure enough, there was the pistol he kept under his pillow.

He'd shot his bedroom wall without even knowing.

Lucy gently pried the weapon from his hands, set the safety back on, and gave it to Virgo. While Natsu was still stunned, she whispered to the maid, "Unload that and put it somewhere he can't get to. We'll give it to Erza tomorrow."

"Understood. I'll check his room later for other weapons." Virgo replied quietly, then ushered the other maids out, reassuring them everything was fine.

Lucy sat down beside Natsu, who was sweating and breathing hard. She took his hands and rubbed them gently, "It was just a bad dream, Natsu."

He shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut, "It wasn't a bad dream…"

Lucy stared at him, eyes widening slightly when she noticed tears sliding down his face. Natsu was trying hard not to cry, but he was failing miserably. His voice cracked, "It was real…"

At first, she couldn't know for certain, but then Lucy thought back to when he'd been so disturbed by the car wreck during the movie earlier. She swallowed and whispered, "Natsu? Did you watch Lisanna die in your nightmare?"

He nodded slightly, then fell forward and rested his head on her shoulder. Once his shoulders started wracking, the dam broke. Natsu clutched at Lucy while he cried, hot tears spilling down his face.

Lucy held him and murmured soft words of what little comfort she could provide for the heartbroken boy, trying to keep her own sadness at bay. It tore her up to see him like this. She did her best to calm him, her voice gentle and soothing, "Shh…I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…"

"Goddammit…" he cried. Natsu _hated _crying. It made him feel so weak and useless, but that's how he felt right then.

"Hush…" Lucy whispered, stroking the soft, spiky pink hair to calm him. She kissed his forehead, "She's in a better place now…no one can hurt her anymore…"

He clutched her closer, burying himself away in Lucy's grasp until he cried himself to sleep.

Lucy gently lay his sleeping form back down on the bed, then got in next to him. She watched his face for a while, making sure he wasn't having anymore nightmares. But Natsu's face gave away nothing, only that he was exhausted.

Her hand came up to caress his face, slowly tracing the curve of his jaw. Lucy's brown eyes were sad. _Oh, Natsu…_


	8. Unwind

**Okay, for those of you who read this when I first posted it, the little experiment I tried with the older Wendy didn't really click that well, so I went back and changed things up, okay? Is everyone more comfortable now? Yes? No? Whatever. Wendy will still be a badass, just saying.**

**Still a long 5,000 word plus chapter, but I changed things so everyone feels better about it. I'm not changing it again, okay? Like I said, this whole story is an experiment for me- I'm playing around with ideas I've never seen or tried before. Wendy didn't work, so I tried something else. **

**Anyway, please review and thanks for reading! Tell me if the change-up was a good idea!**

_Chapter 8: Unwind_

Natsu awoke first the next morning.

He blinked his eyes open, squinting against the sunlight coming through the window. A glance to the side found Lucy, curled up close to him and sleeping peacefully. The air in the room was cold…

Natsu did a double check and stared at Lucy's sleeping form. He definitely didn't recall her there when he crashed last night. _When did she…? Oh._

A look to the wall on the opposite end of the room caused him to notice a distinct, bullet-shaped hole in the paint. Slowly, the events of his nightmare the night before began to unfold. The first thing he decided was that he doubted he'd be getting that gun back. The second thing was that he'd basically cried his eyes out in Lucy's arms until he fell asleep again.

He touched his face and found that even though his cheeks weren't moist anymore, there were definite trails of salt from his tears. Natsu wiped it away and quietly shifted to get out of bed, careful not to disturb Lucy.

She must've been awake already, though, because the moment he moved to leave, she opened one eye and watched him closely, "Are you okay?"

Natsu sat on the edge of the bed, shaking his head before he muttered, "Can you drop me off at Gajeel's garage? I need to get my Corvette back. Maybe Sue can teach you how to drag race."

Lucy sat up and crawled over so she was behind him. Her arms wrapped around his middle, her head fell on his shoulder. She spoke softly, "Are you going to be okay?"

"…Not completely." he decided, "But maybe…maybe it'll get easier after a while."

"I guess coming back home brought back some bad memories with the good ones, huh?" Lucy murmured.

Natsu sighed, "I think it's just that I haven't had a nightmare like that since I came back home…now it feels like she died just a few days ago."

Lucy rubbed his shoulders gently, "Are you going to her grave today? Should I come with you?"

He shook his head again, "No, but I'll bring you along another time. I just…I need to get away for a bit today."

"Okay…" she turned his face and kissed him for a moment, then got up and walked to her room to get dressed.

"Hey, Lucy?" Natsu called after her.

Lucy looked over her shoulder and blinked, "Yeah?"

"Thanks." he murmured.

She smiled brightly at him, "Anytime, Natsu."

**/\/\/\/\/\**

"Holy crap."

That was the first thing Natsu got out of his mouth when he saw his Corvette again since dropping it off in Gajeel's care.

The once pure black Z06 had gotten one hell of a paint job, with intense red, orange, and yellow flames on either side that started from the back of the front wheels and stopped a short ways after the doors.

Sue grinned at the open-mouthed expression on Natsu's face, "So, did we do a good job, or what?"

"Oh, damn right you did." the teen whistled, "That thing looks like a million bucks."

"She's a fuckin' monster, I'll tell you that." Gajeel remarked with a grin, "I'll admit, I took her for a spin and daaaamn, man, does she run! I might have to get me one of these, now."

Natsu smirked, "Hey, you've got my Barracuda, you ain't getting my Corvette."

Gajeel laughed, "That boss is MINE now, flamer."

At that, Natsu's smirk faded a little, "Yeah, well…you can keep it. I don't think I could get behind the wheel of that car again anyway."

Black Steel caught the uneasy tone and grunted, "Might be for the best. I don't think I could fix it the way I did before a second time. She was a god-forsaken mess, I'll tell ya."

Natsu looked uncomfortable with the subject, especially when Lucy cast a worried look at him. He shrugged it off and snatched the keys from Sue, calling over his shoulder, "I'm gonna take her out for a while. Hey, one of you guys teach Lucy how to drag for the races tonight, ok?"

Sue nodded, "Consider it done. Come on, Lucy, let's burn some rubber."

While she took Lucy back to her own car for practice, Gajeel walked up to the window of Natsu's Corvette and spoke lowly, "You doin' alright, man?"

"Not so much." Natsu sighed as he adjusted his mirrors.

Gajeel grunted, as if confirming something, "Hey, if you wanna take the Barracuda out sometime, just lemme know. You know I got your back."

Natsu revved the Corvette to life and nodded, "Thanks, bro. I'll meet up with y'all at Fairy Tail later. We still racing in the desert?"

"Yeah. Don't be late, or blondie might throw a fit." Black Steel snickered, "You tappin' her?"

"Ha! Wouldn't you like to know?" Natsu grinned.

Gajeel cackled, "Hey, I need to know, man! Have you SEEN that ass? I mean, _shiiiit!"_

"Lemme put it this way, that ass ain't for your eyes, brother." Natsu smirked.

Gajeel thumped the roof of the car and laughed, "Alright, get the hell outta here, you fire freak."

Natsu pulled out of the garage with screeching tires before the Corvette blasted onto the streets and shot off.

Black Steel chuckled to himself, "Still a lucky little bastard."

**/\/\/\/\/\**

After a few minutes of speeding through the streets of L.A., Natsu decided to head to Wendy's place. He needed to put his disturbed thoughts at ease.

She had just finished working on a truck with a bad engine, and was giving the keys back to the owner in exchange for a good bit of cash. It was a young man who appeared to be enjoying the conversation he was having with Wendy. Either that, or the fact that she was wearing short-shorts and tank tops in the hot weather. He did seem to be flirting with her a little.

Natsu wasn't sure he liked that.

He pulled up in her driveway and revved the engine of his Corvette in a typical announcement of his arrival.

Wendy smiled his way and finished her conversation with her client before running over to Natsu's car. The young man stared after her to the muscle car and noticed the other teen, then got into his truck hurriedly, clearly under the impression that Wendy was taken.

_Uh-huh. Get going, son, _Natsu thought with satisfaction. Just because didn't have a romantic interest in Wendy didn't mean he couldn't give any of her potential suiters a run for their money. That was the job of big brother, after all.

He blinked when he saw someone else come out of the garage, then realized with pleasant surprise that it was Mirajane. The older girl also seemed surprised he was here, though she smiled at him.

After getting out of the Corvette, he was almost instantly tackle-hugged by the blue-haired teenager. Natsu caught her and spun her around playfully for a moment before setting her down. Mira walked over more calmly, but she looked just as happy to see him.

He glanced to the truck as it left her garage and nodded in its direction, "He was friendly."

"He was funny." Wendy giggled, "He said the engine he had in that truck was a V10. Can you believe it?"

Natsu blinked, "That's ridiculous. He was totally trying to show off. Please tell me that's not the kind of man you're into?"

Mira shook her head immediately, "No way. He was cute, yeah, but definitely not Wendy's type. Besides, he was 23."

"Pedophile." he decided.

The older girl raised an eyebrow, "Excuse me, mister, but you're 19. Legally, you're an adult, so that guy could say the same to you for talking with a 17 year old girl."

Natsu shook his head, "No way. I can't be considered a pedophile just by talking to a girl a year or two younger than me. Besides, since when have I done things legally?"

Wendy rolled her eyes in amusement, "Alright, you two, let's go inside. It's way too hot out here."

**/**

Wendy led them into her house, slapping the money she'd earned on the kitchen counter. She glanced back to look at him, "Want something to drink? I got water, lemonade, tea…"

"No, I'm good. I'll get something later." Natsu replied, glancing around the inside of her house. Even though he'd been here a couple times before, he enjoyed looking at all the pictures she had.

"I'll have some water, please." Mirajane told her, then took a cup Wendy gave her and filled it with water from the tap. She drank it gratefully.

"So, are you going racing tonight?" Wendy asked.

He blinked, "What, you mean with the rest of the guys in the desert? Course I am!"

She nodded, "Yeah, I think I'll join you. I wanna race Gajeel again. Gray, too. I've tied with him before, but there's never been a sure-winner."

Natsu smirked, "Ice boy's losing his touch if you're so close to beating him."

Wendy smiled, "He doesn't use his main car, though. Gray keeps using this 2001 Mustang he won a while back instead of his usual Shelby GT. He hasn't raced me in that one."

"What, you think he's underestimating you?" Natsu asked.

"No, I think he's afraid of getting beaten by Wendy in his best car." Mirajane giggled, "Maybe I should go too. I haven't seen Natsu race since he got back. Hope you haven't lost your touch!"

Natsu laughed. Wendy left the kitchen to her room, calling over her shoulder, "Hey, how about we all go to the beach? It's way too hot outside for me to keep working."

"Sure. I've got nothing planned other than the drags later tonight." he shrugged.

"I'm free." Mira answered.

"Great! Let me get changed into some clean clothes, and we can drive down to the water!" Wendy almost closed the door to her room, then peeked out for a moment, "Do you have something to wear in case we go swimming?"

"Now that you mention it, I don't." Natsu admitted.

She smiled, "No biggie. We can head to the store on the way there and get you some swim trunks or something. Mira, you're driving with Natsu!"

"Okay!" Mira replied after drinking her water.

**/\/\/\/\/\**

As it turned out, some things about girls never changed: Put one in a clothing store, and even if they swore they were only there for one thing, they HAD to check out a few outfits for themselves. Especially during swimsuit season.

Wendy and Mirajane had found clothes they liked. Now Natsu had to wait while the girls tried a few on and give them his opinion. Most they decided for themselves, despite what he thought of them. That's generally how things were for guys who got dragged into these situations. Their comments were demanded, then set aside as a minor factor. This setup was no different.

One thing became very clear during all of this: Wendy had grown up.

The shy, 15 year-old girl Natsu had last seen two years ago had grown into a beautiful, confident, and sweet 17 year-old young woman.

Her figure could rival Erza's, Lucy's, hell, even Mira might've had a run for her money if Wendy tried to make herself look pretty. That was another thing about her. Wendy didn't give a flip if she got covered in grit from working on a car. She had a toughness to her in that aspect, but it didn't make her any less sweet a girl.

He wasn't really sure what to make of it. Natsu had taught the younger Wendy how to work on cars and even race a little, but now she had changed so much, it was like he was with a different person. The change, he decided however, was good.

_When she's not trying on a bunch of different clothes, _Natsu thought. Girls would be girls, though. Especially when it came to girls like Wendy and Mira.

Speaking of Mira…

"Hey, Natsu, what about this one?" she called from behind the curtain.

"I can't say anything if you don't come out." he replied. So far, Wendy and Mira had both tried on a few shirts and shorts, so Natsu wasn't really paying attention. He just wanted to get OUT of the store.

But she hesitated, "W-well…umm…"

Natsu blinked, "What?"

"N-never mind!" Mira stammered from behind the curtain, "I don't think it suits me anyways!"

"How?"

"Just wait outside, okay? I'll be out in a minute!"

She sounded embarrassed about something. Natsu got up off the bench he'd been sitting on and approached the curtains, "Mira, are you okay in there?"

"I'm fine! Just go away for a bit!" Mira said quickly.

Now Natsu was sure something was up, so he pulled the curtains aside a little to look inside, "Seriously, what-"

Mira jumped and almost shrieked, "D-don't let everyone see!" She yanked him inside and threw the curtains shut immediately.

Natsu was about to ask when she had become a lunatic when his mind registered what his eyes found her wearing.

She fidgeted with her fingers and looked sideways with a crimson blush, "D-do you think it's okay?"

Okay?

Mira's slim form was adorned in a white bikini top with wavy black edges and a similarly colored swim skirt. It made her pale, creamy skin seem to glow and showed off her mature figure. Mature meaning the top showed off a good deal of, ah, cleavage which Natsu hadn't really observed until now.

Okay was an understatement. A more understandable reaction would've been-

"Damn…" Natsu muttered.

Mira blinked at him with wide eyes, "H-huh?"

He froze. _Oh, crap, did I really just say that out loud?_

"I uh, mean it looks good!" Natsu said quickly, "Great! That…actually looks really cute on you, Mira."

Mira smiled a little, "Really? I wasn't sure…I do photo shoots sometimes, but…" She played with the hem of her swim skirt nervously, "Are you sure this isn't too…well…revealing? I've never tried one like this before on a public beach…"

"No, that's not embarrassing at all. That look's pretty hot." Natsu slapped a hand over his mouth the moment the word left his lips. _Quit saying weird shit like that!_

His words were heard though, and made Mira blush, "O-oh! Well…thank you!"

"Sure." Natsu muttered, trying to ignore the fact that this close up and with the little bit of extra height he had, her cleavage was all the more visible. Not to mention Mirajane had an amazing figure. The visual image was…arousing.

_Goddamn hormones! _Natsu mentally swore at himself.

Mira clasped her hands behind her back nervously, "S-so…um…" _He thought the swimsuit was hot, or I was?_

"I should probably get out of here." Natsu decided.

She nodded, "Y-yeah, you're right…"

He took a step back to open the curtains and slip out unnoticed, but as Mira turned to her original outfit, her ankle accidentally caught his, yanking her backwards and towards him.

The changing room was silent for a moment.

"Ah…?"

"Eh…?"

Mira crashed into Natsu with a squeak and sent them both sprawling out through the curtains. She landed perfectly on top of him, crushing his face with her breasts.

She whimpered, "Ow…I'm sorry…"

Natsu didn't think when he tried to reply. Instead of words coming out, a breath of warm air ended up caressing the sensitive skin of Mira's breasts.

"A-ahh…" A quiet, involuntary moan escaped Mira's lips.

They froze for a second, then Mira squealed and sat up, clapping her hands over her mouth as her whole body seemed to blush furiously. Natsu just stared up at her, more than a little turned on by the sound she made.

Before they could say anything, a voice made them cringe, "Whoa, what's going on here?"

_Oh, god, NO._

Wendy was just feet away, wearing a green and white checkered bikini. Likely, she had probably been about to ask their opinion, but now she was staring at her two friends on the floor with wide eyes.

Natsu gulped and stammered, "Wendy...I swear, this isn't what it looks like…There's a perfectly rational explanation…"

"Natsu, you're being straddled by a beautiful girl in a bikini." Wendy pointed out, "I think I get it."

Mira looked like she was about to faint from embarrassment, "W-Wendy! Th-th-that i-isn't-"

"Hold on, though, I'm sure Gajeel told me you had a thing for Lucy." Wendy asked suspiciously.

Mira's attitude went from embarrassed to stunned. She stared down at Natsu, "Lucy?"

"Wendy, geez…" Natsu sighed, "I'm not going out with her, I said I was thinking about it. And I'm not trying to mess around with Mira."

"Uh-huh…" Wendy said, showing every sign she was unconvinced.

Mira frowned, "Natsu, what's this about Lucy?"

He glanced up at her, then to the side, "I'll tell you in a bit. Can you, um…get up?"

The girl blinked, then realized she was still straddling the poor boy on the floor. She reddened again as she quickly got up off of him and retreated back into the changing room.

"Wendy, seriously, I didn't mean to…you know." Natsu muttered.

"Honestly, be more careful." she chastised, but smiled good-naturedly, "Erza and I can't be there to babysit you ALL the time."

"Hey!" he protested.

Wendy laughed, "I'm joking Natsu, really. A little mess-up now and then can be pretty funny. Just don't make a big mistake, okay?"

The boy just nodded and kept his mouth shut. Wendy didn't know if he got the hidden message in her tone, but she decided to leave him with that.

Mira called after her as she retreated back into the changing room, probably attempting to cover up her embarrassment, "Wendy, you'd better buy that swimsuit! It looks adorable on you!"

"Okay! You better get that one, too!" was Wendy's reply.

Natsu was shaking his head in bewilderment. _Great. Now my face has a relationship with Mira's boobs. _

**/\/\/\/\/\**

The drive to the beach was quiet for the most part. There was an awkwardness in the air which had yet to clear. Mira had her new swimsuit underneath a light blue skirt, and kept avoiding Natsu's gaze. Said boy had on a plain white t-shirt and a pair of black swim trunks with flame patterns.

When Natsu parked, she finally broke the uneasy silence, "So…what's this Wendy said about Lucy?"

Natsu turned the engine off and leaned his head back with a sigh, "Look, she's helping Erza and I out with some…work. I'm staying at her place for a bit."

Mira bit her lip, "So…are you going out with her?"

He shrugged, "Not right now. I'll tell ya, her dad's a pain in the ass, then the work we're doing is just too…well, it just wouldn't work right now. I won't pretend I haven't thought about it, though."

"I see…" Mira's voice trailed off as she looked down, a little crestfallen. _So, he does like her…why does that bother me?_

"Hey, what's wrong?" Natsu asked, noticing the depressed look on her face.

She quickly shook her head, "N-nothing! Come on, let's find a spot and go swimming…"

Before she could get out of the Corvette, Natsu grabbed her arm and stopped her. Mira stared at him nervously.

The dark eyes were piercing, "Mira, seriously, what's up with you? You were acting so weird in the clothing store…"

Mira's eyes slid away from his, but Natsu didn't let go. She finally found her voice and murmured, "It's just…isn't that a little fast? You haven't even been home a week…are you really going to start dating again so soon?"

Natsu rolled his eyes, "Mira, I _am _a teenage boy, that sort of goes with the territory. But I get what you're saying. Like I said, I'm thinking about it. I haven't gotten into anything serious yet, okay?"

That definitely made her feel better. Mira brightened considerably, "Okay!"

He grinned, happy that she looked better, "Come on, let's hit the beach!"

**/**

They were trying to find a good spot to put their stuff amidst the crowds of people and blaring music when someone waved at them.

"Natsu! Fancy seeing you here!" It was Juvia.

Natsu blinked in surprise, "What are you doing here?"

Juvia smiled, "I can relax a little now and then. Just because I'm a part of Phantom's upper class doesn't mean I have to be a total racing geek. I come out here to surf. Wanna try? My friend's got a couple extra boards in the back of his truck!"

Natsu glanced at Wendy and Mira, who both nodded excitedly, "Sure!"

Juvia's friend was a young guy with black and white hair, and a lazy attitude about him. He stretched and looked up through sunglasses from where he was tanning on a beach towel, "Yo. This guy's Natsu, ain't he? Or is there another pink-haired street kid I don't know about?"

Natsu smirked, "That'd be me. I'm gonna guess you're…one of the Element Four guys who wasn't at the race the other day, um…"

"It's Totomaru, kid." the man grunted, "I was surprised when Juvia told me you tied with Gajeel. Even I haven't managed that yet. You must be a real beast, huh?"

He shrugged, "I haven't been back in town long. Right now, I'm just out racing for the hell of it."

Totomaru raised an eyebrow and shifted his sunglasses down a little to appraise the younger boy, "But you knew Gajeel before you came back, right? What about that? You gonna join Phantom and run with your old pal?"

"Pal isn't the right word." Natsu muttered, "Rival's more like it. I don't know if I'm going to join. Like I said, I just got back in town."

"Well, don't wait too long to decide." Totomaru remarked, "Chances are, Jose already heard about your skills, so you better choose before he chooses for you."

"I'll keep that in mind." Natsu said appreciatively.

The man grinned, "Hey, us racing guys gotta look out for each other, ya know? I won't keep you any longer. Juvia, you know where my truck is, take 'em up and get a board for 'em. I don't mind."

"Thank you!" Wendy chirped, having only observed the conversation until now.

While Juvia led Mira and Wendy up to his truck, Totomaru stopped Natsu, "Hey, are either of those girls in a relationship with you, kid?"

He frowned, "No, they're just friends I knew before I ditched L.A."

"You better make sure the other Phantoms know that. If you've heard about Jose, you know he don't play around. If you refuse to work for him, he might go for those pretty little ladies to change your mind." Totomaru warned.

"You're not gonna tell him, are you?" Natsu's voice became mildly threatening for a brief moment.

"I won't, but I damn near guarantee you there are other Phantoms out around town who might've seen you with those girls. Most of them will do just about anything for some cash." he explained.

Natsu nodded, "Thanks for the tip."

"You can pay me back by racing sometime." Totomaru grinned a challenge, "Ya running the drags in the desert tonight?"

"You bet I am. Keep up and I might see ya there." he smirked in response.

**/**

Surfing. Definitely one of Natsu's favorite pastimes when he needed to unwind. California's beaches were one of the hot spots he hit all the time before he ditched the states. It was just a great place to hang out with friends, surf some good waves, and if you stayed long enough, an awesome spot to watch fireworks and have a party after dark.

The sun was out, the waves were perfect, and the water felt great. Pretty girls in swimsuits were all over the place.

_Perfect day, _Natsu thought as he jumped up on his board to catch a good wave. Juvia joined him for it. Turned out she was good at surfing. Really good.

Wendy and Mira were still learning, but with Natsu and Juvia teaching them, it didn't take long.

As Mira paddled out for a wave, Natsu grinned and decided to play a little prank. He had noticed she wasn't wearing the ankle strap to keep her tied to the board.

They both caught the wave and got up, but as Mira finally found her balance, Natsu moved his surfboard in behind her and grabbed her shoulders quickly, "Shark!"

Mira shrieked and lost her balance, falling backwards off her board and right into Natsu. He caught her and held the girl up easily as he took the wave. Her arms quickly wrapped around his neck to hold on, until the wave finally gave out and the water settled.

Natsu jumped off the board and into the sea in hysterics. Mira smacked his chest as he let her go, "That wasn't funny! I really thought it was a shark for a second!"

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry." he laughed.

Mira's cheek puffed up indignantly, "No, you're not."

"I am!" But his chuckle contradicted his protest.

Mirajane smirked playfully, then suddenly grabbed his head and dunked him face-first into the water. Natsu came up spluttering, making her giggle, "Now you are!"

Natsu grinned fiendishly, "Oh, you're gonna get it, now!"

"Kya~!" Mira squeaked as he went after her, swimming as fast as she could in an effort to get away. But Natsu caught her by the ankle and dragged her back, then picked her up and tossed the girl into an oncoming wave.

He laughed at the big splash she made and waited for her to come up.

But she didn't.

Natsu frowned, "Mira?"

Still nothing.

_Did she hit her head on something? _he wondered. The water was only chest-deep. Supposing he had thrown her at a sandbar…

Natsu took two strokes over to where he'd thrown her when he was pulled under. He came back up with a gasp, spitting sea water out of his mouth.

There was a giggle behind him, "Shark."

He spun around to see Mira laughing at his stunned expression. Natsu's grin became rueful, "Alright, you win."

"Yup!" she agreed cheerfully.

Wendy called over from a short distance away, "Hey! Better go get your boards, or Totomaru'll get mad!"

Natsu rolled his eyes, "Yeah, yeah, yeah!"

Mira laughed, but she swam out to go retrieve her surfboard.

**/\/\/\/\/\**

By the time they got out, the sun was setting and the beach was emptying out.

Natsu and Totomaru were having a chat while they put the surfboards in the back of the former's truck. Juvia, Mira, and Wendy were talking not far off as they dried themselves with towels.

"So, what do you race?" Natsu asked.

Totomaru took a drink from a coke and sighed, "Me? I actually got a few sets of wheels to pick from. You'll have to wait and see which one I'll take to the drags tonight. Might change my mind on what I'm thinking right now."

"Gotcha." the teen replied, then glanced at the sun and held out a fist to the older man, "Well, I'd better head home and get set up. I'll see you in a bit."

"See ya, kid." Totomaru connected the fist bump and climbed into his car, shouting for Juvia to get in.

The older bluenette hurriedly ran to the passenger side, flashing a smile at Natsu before she got in, "See you at the race, Natsu! Bye, Wendy! Bye, Mira!"

The truck rumbled to life, then took off and sped down the street.

Natsu, Mira, and Wendy walked down the sidewalk to where Natsu's Corvette and Wendy's S2000 were parked. Wendy sighed, "Wow, they were really nice."

"Yeah, they were." he admitted.

Mira stretched her arms up over her head, "Mmm! That was so much fun! We have to do that again sometime!"

Natsu grinned, "You bet! But let's hurry back and get set up for the race, okay?"

**/**

They were stopped at a red light when a white Camaro pulled up in the lane to their left. Two guys looked over and saw Mira in the passenger seat of the Corvette, then called over, "Hey there, beautiful!"

Mira tried to ignore them, but the driver jeered, "Hey, we're talking to you, baby! Why don't you hop in with us! Sexy little thing like you must have a lot of needs...We can take care of 'em all back at my flat, girl. How 'bout it?"

Natsu hated comments like that, and was about to snap at them when Mira replied coldly, "Sorry, I'm not interested in guys like you who try to pick up girls for their bodies."

"Oh, come on, baby, don't be that way!" the man licked his lips a little, "You know I could work you harder than your little pinky friend. You don't wanna pass this up, I'm tellin' ya!"

"Little pinky probably bought her with that fancy car, right? Don't buy the wheels if you can't even drive, kid!" the other man laughed raucously.

"I'm _not interested." _Mirajane snapped, clenching her teeth.

The light turned green and the Camaro sped down the road, with the driver shouting back at them, "Call me up when you want a real man, baby! I'll show you a REAL good time!"

Natsu glared after the car and muttered to Mira, "Hey, take your seat belt off."

Mira frowned, "I never put it on. What- hhh!"

Natsu suddenly pulled her out of her seat and into his lap, turning her to face him. He grinned at her blushing face, "Let's take those jerks down a notch."

He gunned the Corvette and caught up with Camaro in just a few seconds, blaring the horn to get their attention. The guys driving saw him and stared as the Z06 raced past them.

"'K, hold on tight." Natsu warned.

Mira wrapped her arms around his neck and gasped as Natsu suddenly shifted gears and spun the Corvette 180 degrees around, then put it in reverse. At the same time, they ended up on the right side of the Camaro so they were reversing right next to the driver's side.

Mira saw the other guy's astonished faces and wanted to smile, but then decided they could show them up a little more. She stared at Natsu's face while he grinned smugly at the Camaro's driver. The girl swallowed nervously.

_Oh, what the hell!_

She leaned in and kissed him full on the mouth, making Natsu pause, but he must have caught on because he closed his eyes and responded softly. Mira tangled her fingers in the pink locks and just savored the moment.

Natsu meanwhile, opened his left eye to look at the guys in the Camaro, who looked dumbstruck, and thrust his middle finger out the window at them. _Yeah, hate all you want, bitches!_

Mira separated just to be sure they didn't crash and smirked at the Camaro's passengers. Their faces were absolutely _priceless._

"Get some real skills to back up that big mouth." Natsu sneered at them, then floored the gas and accelerated way ahead of the Camaro before he wheeled the Corvette around again and drove off.

Once they were well ahead of their antagonizers, Natsu laughed hysterically, "Did you see the looks on their faces?! They were all like, 'What is this?!'"

"That really was funny, wasn't it?" Mira giggled.

Natsu raised an eyebrow at her, "Good idea with the kiss. You're pretty good at that…have you been practicing?"

"No way!" she squealed, then brushed her hair to the side shyly, "Actually…that was my first real kiss…"

He blinked in astonishment, "No way! How? I've already seen like three guys hit on you today. You seriously haven't tried going out with one?"

Mira shook her head, "No. I guess I couldn't find one that's really…my type."

Natsu smirked, "So, am I your type, or was that just to get back at those guys?"

"I'm not telling." she giggled, then lay her head down on his shoulder. Mira closed her eyes and sighed, "I'm gonna take a nap here before we get home so I'm rested for the drags later."

"Do you really wanna go to the drags tonight?" he asked, "You sound pretty tired."

"And miss my chance to watch your first race since you got back? No way…" Mira mumbled into his shirt, then got really quiet.

Natsu realized she had fallen asleep and grinned, shaking his head, "Some things never change."


	9. Drag Race

***PLEASE READ THIS FIRST!***

**Okay, so for those of you who read the last chapter and haven't gone back since, GO BACK NOW! I changed some things since mostly everyone was against the idea of my little...experiment. Anyway, better check the last chapter out so this one makes more sense. **

**As always, please review and thanks for reading!**

_Chapter 9: Drag Race_

Lucy tapped her foot impatiently as she stood, waiting, by her Ford ST. They were at the drag racing tracks in the desert just outside of L.A.

Meanwhile, Natsu was late.

Sue patted her shoulder, "Chill, Lucy. He'll show up, and we won't start without Gajeel. He told me Natsu has a tendency to show up late. All the Dragon Slayers are like that."

Lucy blinked, "Dragon Slayers?"

"It's what people call Gajeel, Natsu, and a girl named Wendy who ran with them a few years ago." Boze explained from her other side, "See, they all had a taste for putting dragon artwork on their cars. And since they were all really good, people started calling them the Dragon Slayers. Wendy wasn't a Dragon Slayer two years back, but she's gotten pretty good, so she's technically considered one. If she put a dragon on her car, it'd more obvious, though."

"What, were they like siblings, or something?" Lucy asked.

Sue shrugged, "Well…not really. They had a lot in common since all three were abandoned by their parents at an early age, but…Gajeel said he and Natsu were always more like rivals. Wendy was like…their student of sorts? I'm not sure where she stood in that setup. She's grown up and gone out on her own, so it's not the same anymore. If anything, the Dragon Slayers were more like a team."

"Huh." Lucy chewed her lip thoughtfully.

**/**

A short distance away, two cars were speeding side by side towards the drag racing tracks.

"Dammit, I'm late again." Natsu growled.

Wendy was driving in her Honda S2000 beside his Corvette, and glanced over at him, "Sounds familiar. You never did show up on time that often."

Natsu shrugged, "I'm a busy guy! And Mira took too long to find something to wear!"

Mira giggled in his passenger seat, "Hey! This dress was buried in my closet! I practically had to dig it out!"

The mere mention of the dress made Natsu glance away from her. Her choice had been a strapless, pure white, _short_ dress that stopped at the middle of her thighs and exposed a good deal of her back.

He shook his head to clear the mental image. _Does she have to wear dresses that are so frickin' hot?! _

They kept driving in silence for about a minute when the roar of an engine came up behind them and ended up on Natsu's other side.

Gajeel grinned over from his Barracuda, "'Sup, kids. Been a while since we rode like this, huh?"

"Hey Gajeel!" Wendy called. Mira just waved at him.

Natsu smirked, "What's your excuse for being late?"

"A man has needs, punk." Gajeel snickered, "Some things just can't wait til' later."

"Dude, if you're about to tell me something about your sex life, please, just stop now." Natsu grimaced.

Gajeel cackled, "Haters gonna hate. How far do you think we are from the drags?"

Wendy pursed her lips thoughtfully, "Half a mile? Maybe more?"

Black Steel's red eyes gained the light of anticipation, "How about we race to see who gets there first? Winner gets to race in the first drag!"

Natsu grinned, "Interesting…I'm down."

"You boys won't even know what hit you!" Wendy challenged, smiling fiercely.

Gajeel laughed, "We'll see, kiddo. Gee-hee!"

The three cars came to a stop in the middle of the desert, revving their engines in preparation.

Gajeel pulled a piece of paper out of his car, crumpled it, and held it up, "When this hits the ground, we burn rubber. Ready to lose?"

Natsu glanced at him, "Are we talking, or racing?"

"Good point." Black Steel agreed, then pulled his arm back.

The cars rumbled in anticipation, up until Gajeel tossed the paper ball as high as he could. The instant it hit the ground, dust went everywhere as they shot forward.

Natsu took an early lead and smirked at the other two through his mirrors, "You guys really gotta punch it better."

Mira glanced at him, "Don't underestimate them, Natsu!"

Gajeel and Wendy weren't pushovers, at all.

Black Steel's Barracuda was a monster for a reason, and after a few seconds of acceleration, it was right up beside Natsu's Corvette.

Natsu grinned, "That's more like it."

"You ain't gonna win that easily, kid." Gajeel chuckled.

Wendy was determined to show how much better she'd gotten, and she started by flooring the gas and pulling ahead of both of them.

"Not so easy to beat now, huh, boys?" she smiled mischievously.

Gajeel grinned after her, "Not bad, girly."

The three cars sped up to 120mph and found themselves right beside each other, pushing ahead slightly every few seconds to try and gain a lead on the others.

Black Steel glanced at the Corvette beside him and grinned, "Alright, flamer, I got something for your ass."

The Barracuda surged ahead and got right in front of Natsu, then started swerving from side to side and got dust all over the Corvette and inside of it.

"H-hey!" Mira protested when dust filled her lungs.

Natsu coughed and yelled as he rolled up his windows, "Cheating hardass bastard!"

"Gee-hee! How does that dust taste, Salamander?!" Gajeel cackled.

Suddenly, the Barracuda was jerked out of Natsu's way as Wendy rammed her car into the right side.

Gajeel was stunned for a moment as he recovered, then flashed an astonished look at Wendy. His voice was disbelieving, "Oh, I know you did not just do that."

"Two can play at that game, Gajeel." Wendy smirked, "I'm not some little kid anymore."

Natsu took the chance and roared his Corvette ahead of them, putting Gajeel and Wendy behind a good ways. After he was a safe distance in front, he shifted gears, spun the Z06 into reverse, and started racing backwards.

Mira gasped and scrabbled to hold onto something, "N-Natsu!"

The window came down again as Natsu flicked off Gajeel and laughed crazily, "Yeah, smartass, how d'ya like that?!"

"You showoff flamer!" Black Steel yelled back, but he was grinning from ear to ear.

Natsu started swerving his car from side to side, dousing both Gajeel and Wendy's cars in dust.

Wendy shouted as the dust got in her car, "Hey! Quit racing dirty! I just helped you!"

"Ain't no rules!" he called back with a laugh.

Wendy's eyebrows shot up, "Oh, really?!"

She shifted gears and floored the gas. Her S2000 accelerated and was suddenly right in front of Natsu's Corvette.

Natsu paled, "Oh, shit!"

Wendy's Honda bumped the front end of the Corvette, making Natsu scramble to stay in control.

Gajeel cackled wildly, "Gee-heeheehee! Get a taste of your own medicine, you crazy bastard!"

"Don't mess with me, Natsu." Wendy warned playfully, "It's like you said- no rules!"

Natsu wisely accelerated away, then spun the Corvette back around as Wendy and Gajeel caught back up to him.

There was just under a quarter mile left, and the three racing cars could see the drag tracks just ahead. They were already going 150mph, but as they got closer, all three drivers instinctively reached for the NOS.

Natsu glanced from side to side, waiting tensely for someone to make the first move.

Gajeel also seemed to be waiting, but then Wendy decided to go for it.

"Ladies first, boys!" she hit the NOS and surged ahead, leaving Natsu and Gajeel in her wake.

Natsu smirked and punched it right after, almost at the same time as Gajeel.

"Wendy still hits it early." Black Steel grinned.

The Barracuda and Corvette pulled ahead of the S2000 by a small distance, as the speeds reached 180mph plus. Natsu and Gajeel were neck and neck, fighting for that extra inch that would get them the win.

They hit the tracks at last, with Gajeel having the smallest sliver of an advantage over Natsu.

Black Steel hit his dashboard and laughed, "GEE-HEE! Suck it, punk!"

Natsu rolled his eyes, "Lucky metal-head."

"Hey, that was pretty close." Mira said helpfully and put a hand on his shoulder.

Wendy came in third, but smiled anyway, "Almost had 'em. Oh, well…that was so fun!"

**/**

The people waiting at the drag track watched the three racing cars pull in, saw Gajeel wheel a doughnut in victory.

Sue smirked and nudged Lucy, "There's our guys, right there."

"Shit, that was pretty good." Boze whistled.

"They are Dragon Slayers, after all." Sue reminded him, "They don't mess around."

Lucy was already heading over to Natsu's Corvette as the three racers and Mira got out of their cars and faced each other. Other people started crowding around them.

Gajeel grinned, "First drag of the night is mine, bitches! That was the deal!"

Natsu shrugged, "You can have it. I just let you win 'cause I owe you for doing the paintwork on my Corvette."

Black Steel sneered, "Yeah, right!"

"Gajeel, don't make me dent the other side of your car." the bluenette racer giggled.

He laughed good-naturedly. None of them had had this much fun in a while; There was no point in ruining it.

Gajeel grabbed a bottle of beer from someone and held it up, then jumped onto the hood of his car and roared, "LET THE PARTY BEGIN!"

Everyone cheered and started getting set up, blasting music, drinking like crazy, and dancing while the racers got ready.

Lucy managed to get through the crowd to where Natsu was chatting with Mira and the bluenette girl, who was decidedly very pretty. She tapped his shoulder and smiled, "Hey!"

Natsu grinned, "There you are! Lucy, this is Wendy. Wendy, this is Lucy."

Lucy held out her hand with a cheerful look, "Hi there! Nice to meet you!"

"It's nice to meet you too!" Wendy replied, smiling back.

"That was really impressive. You got so close to beating them!" Lucy complimented.

Wendy laughed and clasped her hands together, "It wasn't enough. They won, but I don't mind. It was more than worth it. I've never raced both of them at the same time, before!"

"Well, you did better than me, I promise that." Lucy got a nervous look, "I'm doing my first race tonight. Any pointers?"

The pretty bluenette smiled brightly, "Sure! Is there something in particular you want to know?"

Lucy tapped her chin, then asked, "Well, whenever I was shifting gears earlier for practice, Sue kept telling me I shifted too early or too late. I can't figure out how to shift at the right time! I mean, I get that it's easy to just look down at the speedometer, but I get nervous that I'll lose control if I look away, you know?"

"I understand." Wendy nodded, "I was like that when Natsu and Gajeel taught me how to race. Look, just go with the engine. It's not that hard- when you accelerate, you'll feel the engine build up, but when it's time to shift gears, it'll sort of die down a little. When you feel that, then you can make your move!"

Lucy took a moment to memorize that, then smiled, "Thank you! Maybe now I'll actually keep up with my opponent."

Mira took her hands and spoke cheerfully, "Don't worry, you'll do great!"

Natsu had turned from the conversation to the attire. Lucy's, specifically, "Wow…"

The blonde was wearing a short, black skirt and a strapless pink tank-top with the words, "Love and Lucky" on the front, that stopped halfway down her stomach.

Natsu realized that he was between two beautiful girls in hot outfits and had to stop himself from becoming too…thoughtful. _Are they doing this on purpose or something?_

Lucy blinked at his stare, "Huh?"

Sue walked over and smirked, "I'd say Natsu likes the way you look, Lucy. Mira looks pretty hot too…He's probably thinking something dirty! What, you want a threesome, big guy?"

"I'm gonna need you to shut up right now." Natsu decided without daring to look at any of the girls.

Mira and Lucy both blushed, but Wendy just smirked, "He wishes."

Natsu raised an eyebrow, "I think this is where I go find Totomaru and get set up for a drag. See ya."

**/**

Gajeel was waiting at the starting line, barking a challenge to the crowd of people, "Alright, you bunch of pansies! Who's gonna race me, eh?!"

Most of the people seemed reluctant, knowing that the odds of beating him were fairly slim.

"I'll take you up on that."

Everyone stared as a yellow Camaro with black racing stripes drove up beside Gajeel's car. Loke smirked at Black Steel confidently, a girl in the passenger seat hugging onto him.

Gajeel grinned, "You sure you can handle the disappointment, pretty boy?"

"If I win, my girl will celebrate with me all night long." Loke said cooly, "If I lose, she'll comfort me all night long. It's a win-win situation."

"How about if I win, you give me the same amount of money it took for you to buy that pretty thing into your car?" Gajeel sneered.

"OHHHHH!" the crowd exclaimed at the challenge, always up for a good wager.

Loke pointed at Gajeel, "You're so going to lose, metal-head. You don't know what style is."

"Style don't mean shit if you lose. Gee-hee!" Gajeel cackled.

Loke smirked, then leaned over to kiss the girl beside him before she got out so the race could start.

Cana Alberona was the one who always started the races, so she got up in front, took a swig of beer, then grinned at the two drivers in their cars, "Alright, boys, are ya done bitchin' at each other? Remember, it's a quarter mile race, so if ya keep going after that, just go on home."

The crowd laughed, but then Cana pointed at Gajeel's car, "Ready?"

Black Steel's Barracuda roared to life, shaking with the massive force of its V8 engine.

Cana shifted to Loke's Camaro, "Ready?"

Loke revved the engine with a smug grin on his face.

"Set…GO!" Cana shouted.

Tires squealed as the two muscle cars shot off, with Gajeel's Barracuda popping a wheelie for a few moments.

Loke pulled ahead at first, flooring the gas until he had a definite lead on Gajeel. He grinned as the speedometer climbed to 60mph in just under 6 seconds, "It's over before it's even begun."

But Gajeel shifted gears and roared ahead, pulling up right beside the Camaro. Black Steel smirked as Loke's glance became uneasy, "You haven't won yet, playboy!"

Loke tried to accelerate ahead with a NOS burst, but got the timing off in his brief panic, "Shit!"

"Way too early!" Gajeel cackled, then blasted forward as his Barracuda's NOS tank brought the car up to 110mph.

The whole race was finished in just over 12 seconds.

"Yeah!" Gajeel pumped his fist and shot a devilish grin Loke's way, "Owned you! OWNED YOU!"

"Dammit." Loke swore, "Can't believe I lost…"

They spun around and headed back to the other cars, where Cana slapped the prize money into Gajeel's hand, "Gajeel wins! What an upset!" she added sarcastically.

The people laughed as Loke grumbled, but he already had a few girls there to comfort him.

Black Steel smirked and waved the money around mockingly, "Two for two. That's how it's done, playboy. Gee-hee!" He drove away from the starting line, leaving Loke to nurse his pride.

**/**

Natsu spotted Totomaru and Juvia just chatting by their cars, but before he could head over to them, he bumped into someone.

"Hey, watch it!"

Natsu realized it was Gray, and quickly snapped back, "You were in my way, jerk."

Gray's eye twitched, "Yeah? Why don't you try to back up that big mouth on the track. We'll see who's in the way then."

"Why don't both of you quit being little kids and come over here!" Totomaru had spotted them and yelled over.

The two boys glared at each other, but walked over to the Phantom racers. Juvia smiled, "Hey, Natsu. And who's your friend?"

"He's not my friend." Natsu muttered, "This bastard's name is Gray. He's a pain in the ass."

Gray looked like he wanted to spit, but Totomaru smirked, "I see you two don't get along that well, eh? But I got dibs on racing Natsu tonight…how about you test your luck against Juvia, Gray?"

He shrugged, "I guess that'll work. Is she good?"

Juvia's eyebrows shot up, "Am I good?"

Natsu smirked, "Dude, you're _so _gonna regret asking that."

"Better go get your ride set, man." Totomaru grinned.

Gray rolled his eyes and headed off. Juvia watched him go and flashed a curious look at Natsu, "Well, he might be cocky, but he's kinda hot. Think he can handle the disappointment, Natsu?"

"I hope you leave him in the dust." Natsu answered, "And there ain't a thing about him that's hot. For real, that guy's house is freezing. He sets the A/C to like 50 degrees. I went there once. Never gone back."

"I'm not sure that's what Juvia meant." Totomaru chuckled, "Well, then this'll be fun. Alright, I'll go wait for ya on the drags. See you in a sec."

"Gotcha." Natsu grinned back and left to go get his Corvette.

**/**

As it turned out, Gray beat them to it in his white, 2001 Mustang.

Juvia's Honda Civic took the spot on the drag track next to him, glancing at the spiky-haired boy through her window, "You sure you wanna do this? You know I run for the best in Phantom."

"I came here to race." Gray said without looking at her, "And I race only the best."

"Then let's see if you've got what it takes to keep the best interested." Juvia replied.

Cana grabbed another bottle of alcohol and held it up to quiet the crowds, "Alright, let's see if Gray can run with one of Phantom's top girl. You ready, Juvia?"

Juvia's engine revved in answer.

"Stripper-boy?" Cana pointed to Gray.

"Ready." Gray muttered as his Mustang roared to life.

Cana took a swig of her drink and shouted, "GO!"

The two cars shot forward, about equal in starting speed. Juvia took a lead on Gray after the first few seconds.

The bluenette glanced in her mirror at her opponent, "Come on, is that all?"

Gray wasn't finished. Not by a long shot. The Mustang throttled forward as he shifted gears, catching up to Juvia with it's powerful V8 engine.

That wasn't to say Gray had Juvia finished. She smirked and upped the ante, raising the Honda's speed over 100mph.

"You have to want it, boy." Juvia said amusedly.

Gray grinned with satisfaction. _She's good._

His Mustang caught up again, now with just seconds to spare before the race was finished. Gray hit the NOS and roared ahead, gaining a lead on Juvia's Honda.

Juvia's smile widened, "Not bad." She hit her nitrous, but knew the distance was too small for her to catch up with him. It was fun to try, though. She had just been playing anyway.

The distance between them at the finish line was just a sliver, but Gray took it.

They returned to the starting line, where Gray retrieved his prize money and faced Juvia.

Cana grinned, "Gray actually won! Well, whaddya know?"

"You say that like you were betting against me." Gray muttered.

Cana was smart enough not to comment on that. Or show that she slapped a wad of cash into Macao's hand.

"Not bad for a cocky street kid." Juvia praised.

Gray smirked, "You weren't half bad yourself. If you'd hit the nitrous a second earlier, you mighta had me."

Juvia shrugged, "Well, I wasn't really giving it my all. I just wanted to see if you were all talk. No offense, but I don't think you'd make it very far running against Phantom."

Gray raised an eyebrow, "Really? Then I might have to tell you that I'm not even running my fastest rig. That Mustang's just something I play with on the drags."

She smiled, "Interesting…" Juvia held out her hand, "Cell phone."

He grinned and passed her the phone, then watched as she added her number to the contacts list.

Juvia finished and gave his phone back, walking away with a wink, "See you around."

"We'll see." Gray replied, then headed off somewhere else. A smirk found its way onto his face. _I'll have to race her again sometime._

Little did he know, Juvia was thinking the exact same thing.

**/**

Natsu was waiting impatiently for Totomaru by the drag tracks. _Where the hell is he?_

"Looking for Totomaru?"

Sue walked up rolling her eyes to the side, "He's…a bit busy."

Natsu glanced sideways and saw the Phantom racer sitting on a car with a girl in his lap. "Busy" meaning they were busily making out without a care in the world.

"Really?" Natsu muttered.

Sue smiled, "He does that a lot. Might as well get used to it."

Suddenly, Lucy pulled up in her Ford ST and gave Natsu a curious look, "Are you about to race?"

He shrugged, "I guess my opponent's a little…busy."

"Can I race then?" she asked.

Sue raised an eyebrow, "You wanna race _Natsu?"_

Lucy shook her head immediately, "No way! But…maybe you?"

Sue pursed her lips, then nodded, "Okay. I'll take you up on that. Lemme go get my car."

While she hurried off, Natsu walked to the driver's side of Lucy's car and offered a grin at her, "First race, huh?"

"When was yours?" she asked with a smile.

"When I was 14." he admitted.

Lucy's jaw dropped, "You must be joking."

"Nope." Natsu grinned, "And I won. Poor little rich kid didn't even stand a chance."

"That makes me feel better." she said sarcastically, making him remember Lucy _was _a rich kid.

"Hey, take it easy." Natsu reassured her, "You'll do great. Gajeel told me Sue is more into mechanical stuff than actual racing. You've got as fair a chance as anyone."

Lucy smiled, "Okay. Promise you won't tell Erza if I lose?"

Natsu chuckled, "You got it."

Sue pulled up beside Lucy in her Chevy Impala and looked over at them, "Done flirting? Let's get started."

Lucy flashed a nervous glance at Natsu, but he nodded encouragingly, "Good luck."

"Don't I at least get a kiss for good luck?" she asked hopefully.

He smirked, then leaned in and gave her a quick peck on the lips, pulling away slightly to murmur, "Don't panic. It's just a straight shot, only lasts for 15 seconds. You'll do fine."

"Thank you." she whispered, then pulled up to where Cana was waiting for her and Sue.

Cana emptied her bottle of alcohol and wheezed, "Phew! I think I'm actually getting kinda drunk for once!"

"That might be a first." Natsu remarked from the side.

"Might be the first time she's admitted it." Gajeel suddenly appeared beside him with a smirk.

Cana was drunk alright. Grinning like a kid, she reached under her t-shirt and took her bra out. Guys whistled and laughed raucously at her, but she didn't give a flip.

"Ready?" she pointed at Sue.

Sue grinned and nodded, revving her engine.

"Ready?" Cana turned to Lucy.

_As I'll ever be, _she thought silently, but also hit the gas a little.

Cana swung her bra in a circle, then tossed it up in the air. The moment it touched the ground, the race was on.

Lucy and Sue both floored the gas of their cars, rushing forward to try and gain an early lead.

Sue had never really been much of a racer, but she felt pretty confident going up against a first-timer. She grinned, "Sorry, Lucy. You're my friend, but I don't like to lose."

The Impala started pulling ahead of Lucy's Ford, making the blonde briefly panic, but she remembered what Natsu had said.

_Sue is more into mechanical stuff than actual racing. You've got as fair a chance as anyone._

"I can do this…" Lucy told herself, "I can do this…"

She felt the engine of her Ford start to lay down, recalling what Wendy told her.

_When it's time to shift gears, it'll sort of die down a little. When you feel that, then you can make your move!"_

Lucy decided to go for it and shifted gears, allowing her to gain ground on Sue's Impala. A small thrill went through her at the brief success. _I got it!_

Sue watched Lucy start catching up in her rear view mirror and raised an eyebrow, "Okay, so Lucy's getting lucky, huh? Not lucky enough!"

She pulled ahead a little more, but Lucy had figured out the timing of her engine and when it was best to shift gears.

Lucy went into third and briefly glanced down at the speedometer, realizing she was pushing 70mph already.

They were just a few seconds from the finish line and neck and neck. Sue's confidence started to waver. Lucy was really gaining ground on her.

"Just a little more…" Lucy muttered, watching the speed climb up to 85 before she finally shifted to fourth gear.

Sue went for broke and did the same, but got the timing off and only made her Impala slow down. She shook her head, realizing it was useless, "You gotta be kidding me."

Lucy went over the finish line with a full car length ahead of Sue, then came to a stop before she finally grinned, "Yes!"

She won!

The two racers turned their cars around and drove back to the starting line, where Cana handed Lucy the prize money. It was just a small bit since they weren't big time racers, but 500 dollars wasn't really what she cared about anyway.

Natsu and Gajeel went up to the girls as they faced each other.

"Not bad." Gajeel whistled, "Blondie might make a street racer, after all. I'm impressed."

Sue held her hand out, "That was really good, Lucy. Nice race."

"Thanks!" Lucy laughed, "I can't believe I actually won!"

"I can. Sue kept shifting up early." Natsu remarked.

Sue puffed her cheek up indignantly, "I'm not THAT bad…"

"Nothing a little practice won't fix." Gajeel told her, then blinked at something a short ways away, "Well, look who finally got away?"

Totomaru came up with a satisfied look, "Ahh, I needed that."

"Dude, too much information." Natsu muttered, "Are you finally ready to race?"

The older man opened his mouth to answer, then frowned in the direction of the city, "Oh, shit. Party's over."

"Why? What's-!" Gajeel trailed off and swore, "Aw, fuck, really?!"

A black limo was headed towards the drag tracks, accompanied by a white Chrysler and a Ford Ranger truck.

Natsu didn't like the look of that. He glanced at Gajeel, "Is that who I think it is?"

"Boss man decided to show up tonight of all nights." Black Steel muttered, "That'll be Jose, for sure."

"Dare you to call him, 'Boss Man' to his face." Totomaru remarked, "Wonder what he wants?"

"One way to find out." Juvia came up behind them with narrowed eyes, "And I was actually having a good time, too. This'd better be important."

The minute that limo came into view, most of the racing crowd ditched, disappearing into their cars and driving around the entourage to go back to the city. No one tried to stop them, but they hurried off anyway until only a few people were left.

Natsu spotted Mira climb into a truck with Elfman, and also watched Wendy vanish into her S2000 to speed off. Gray didn't seem to be in a hurry, but he headed to his Mustang anyway and also left. Macao and Wakaba dragged a half-drunk Cana to their pickup and joined the disappearing crowd.

"Should we leave?" Natsu asked Gajeel.

Black Steel chewed his lip thoughtfully, "…You stay. Lucy, Sue, go find Boze and get out. Jose doesn't like spectators."

Lucy glanced at Natsu worriedly, "Will you guys be okay?"

"We'll be fine." Juvia assured her, "Gajeel and I can back Natsu up if Jose doesn't want him here."

"And me." Totomaru added lazily, "I still haven't raced this kid."

Sue dragged Lucy to her car and almost pushed her in, then grabbed Boze from the thinning crowd and took off in her Impala, with Lucy's Ford close behind.

The limo pulled up and parked in the middle of the drag track. The Chrysler and Ranger also came to a stop beside it.

Sol climbed out of the Chrysler, and a huge man from the Ranger.

The limousine door opened and a tall, dark-skinned man came out in a black business suit. His long, black hair was held up in a ponytail, and he seemed to radiate trouble.

_So, that's Jose, _Natsu thought, judging the man carefully.

Gajeel elbowed him and muttered lowly, "Let me do the talking. That big guy's Aria. You piss off Jose, and Aria'll break you in every way possible."

"Got it." Natsu replied as the drug lord walked up to them with his bodyguards.

Jose strode over casually, lighting a cigar and smoking it briefly before he stopped just short of them.

Gajeel nodded respectfully, "Boss. This is-"

"-Natsu Dragneel, I presume." Jose interrupted, "Sol's told me. It's quite an achievement, beating two of the Element Four and tying with Gajeel…how interesting."

He pulled the cigar from his mouth and blew out smoke, "I assumed you'd be here tonight. As expected, I was correct. I'm going to offer you a choice, Natsu Dragneel. And I want you to think very carefully before you answer me."

Natsu's eyes narrowed, "Sir?"

"You will work for me." Jose stated, "There are jobs that must be completed once a month, every month. Usually, the Element Four and Gajeel do this work for me, but things have become rather…complicated as of late. A skilled driver like you is hard to come by…Here is my offer:

"Do the jobs with my best drivers, work for Phantom, and I will allow you to remain in Los Angeles. Refuse, and I will evict you. If you do not comply to that…it will mean trouble for you, and those close to you."

Natsu looked into Jose's dark eyes and saw nothing but cold certainty there. This man knew he had power and was using every advantage that came with it.

"Of course, you will be paid." Jose remarked, "I give all of my top tier at least 5% of every job they do."

"How much does 5% mean?" he dared to ask.

Jose smirked, "5,000 dollars a job."

_That means every one of this guy's shipments is worth 100,000 dollars, _Natsu realized. That was a serious haul.

Natsu seemed to briefly consider, but answered quickly, "Okay. I'll do it."

The drug lord's dark smile was confident, "Of course you will. The next job will be very soon…be ready to move. That is all for now."

Jose turned and walked back to his limo, with Sol and Aria close behind along with the rest of Jose's Phantom bodyguards.

As soon as the cars left, Gajeel exhaled, "Geez, did he really have to blow the party just to tell us what was obviously going to happen?"

"He must really have taken an interest in Natsu." Juvia murmured, "Otherwise, he wouldn't have bothered coming here."

Totomaru shrugged, "Maybe. Well, I'm not racing tonight without people to watch me beat you. I'll race you some other time, Natsu. See y'all around."

While he and Juvia headed off to go home, Natsu muttered to Gajeel, "So, now what?"

"It's simple." Black Steel replied, "He calls, we show, we don't ask, we don't complain, we just do it. And hope we live to fight another day."


	10. New Friends and Old Rivals

**Okay, I've been up for hours and just want to get the chapter up so I can take a nap -_- Still, it's pretty funny...Oh, yeah, does anyone know someone on this site who does like artwork for scenes in these fics? I thought y'all might like to see a picture of Natsu and Lucy kissing in the Corvette from chapter 5...just an idea.**

**As always, please REVIEW and thanks for reading!**

_Chapter 10: New Friends and Old Rivals_

"So, you met with Jose?" Erza asked.

She was standing in the middle of Natsu's room beside Siegrain, while Natsu sat on the edge of his bed and Lucy took a seat in the chair at his desk.

"Yeah. And he said that there would be a job coming up soon." he replied, "It'll happen sometime between now and the end of the month, so that's like a two week window."

Siegrain nodded thoughtfully, "Well, it's a tight schedule, but it's free enough so that it'll be hard for us to predict when he'll make his move. Did he give you any details on the job?"

Natsu shook his head, "No, but I'm pretty sure it's a shipment of sorts. I can't say for sure, though."

"Either way, with things as they are, it doesn't look like you'll be able to tell us exactly when Jose summons you." Sieg decided, "I'm going to put a tracker in your Corvette."

"Like hell you are." Natsu shot a glare at him, "You aren't gonna track me to Jose and throw us both in prison. Is that your grand plan?"

Erza frowned, "We're doing this for your safety, Natsu. How can we help you if we don't even know where you are? You have to trust us."

"I trust _you._"he said flatly, "There isn't another cop in this city who can say that."

"If you don't trust _us_, then there's no way we'll be able to pull this off." Sieg argued, "The tracker is going in that car, whether you like it or not."

_"Policia maldita, que piensan que pueden hacer lo que quieran." _Natsu muttered. (Damn police, they think they can do whatever they want.)

Siegrain's eyebrow twitched, "You talking trash to me in spanish, boy? How about I translate every one of those words into another year in prison?"

_"Que tal si rompo la maldita cara y puedo traducir eso?" _Natsu shot back. (How about I bust your damn face and you can translate THAT?)

"Okay, enough." Erza interrupted, "We'll put a tracker into the Corvette, but it'll be just for safety, understood?"

Natsu sighed, "Alright, fine."

"If we're done here, then I have a report to file, and a Corvette to rig. You'll get it back later today." Siegrain said, then walked out of the room. Erza followed him soon after, closing the door behind her.

Once they were gone, Natsu threw his hands up into the air, "Well, great. Now I've got a wired Corvette and nothing else I can drive."

Lucy offered an apologetic look, "Well, it's not really your car, right? I mean, Erza let you take it from the impound lot, after all. Isn't she just letting you borrow it?"

He scratched the back of his head, "Well…"

Lucy crossed her arms, "Y~ou were going to steal it, weren't you?"

Natsu rolled his eyes, "Guilty."

"Yeah, I figured." she smirked, "But it looks like that won't be happening."

He shrugged, "Anyway, I need a new car, asap."

Lucy frowned, "And where are you going to get one? Not from Gajeel; you thought the last one had a bomb strapped to it, remember?"

"No way am I asking any more favors from him." Natsu agreed quickly, "But I got something at Wendy's place we can check out. Wanna come see?"

"Sure!" she chirped, "Lemme get changed into some jeans and a t-shirt."

**/\/\/\/\/\**

For once, Natsu showed up when Wendy wasn't fixing cars, so she didn't have dirt all over her.

"Saturday's my day off." she told them, "So, what's up?"

"Just wondering if we could check out the little project Macao dropped off here." Natsu replied.

Wendy smiled, "Sure. Come on out back."

**/**

The project was Natsu's Charger from the Guatemala Favelas. It still didn't have an engine or a much-needed paint job, but it was coming along nicely.

Lucy stared at the beat up, half-built car, "What happened to it?"

Natsu snorted, "That's a little project I started back in the favelas. I've been building it from the ground-up for nearly a year."

Her jaw dropped, "You _built _this?"

"Natsu always liked to make his rides original." Wendy mentioned, "That Barracuda Gajeel drives? When Natsu first got it, he basically gutted the whole thing and changed everything out. It was more his car than anything."

"Wow." Lucy muttered, still looking over the Charger, "It's not ready to drive, though. So, what are we doing here, just looking at it?"

"Not quite." Natsu looked over the setup he had in the Charger, trying to recall what he knew about cars of this type. Eventually, he glanced at Wendy, "She needs an engine. What do you think?"

Wendy set her hands on the front of the Charger, where the engine and hood would eventually go, and chewed her lip thoughtfully, "Well…a standard V8 for this won't do you much good in a race against Gajeel or the Element Four, so…I'd say a rebuilt R6 might be your best bet. It's that, or imports."

Natsu shook his head, "I ain't putting an import engine into this beast."

"Then you're gonna need an R6." Wendy decided, "And that's on you. I don't have the money to get one of those."

"I'll handle it, don't worry about that. You just track down the rest of the parts I need, and leave getting ahold of them to me." he answered.

Lucy glanced between them, "Is this how you normally talk? I understood like…half of that. I'm don't know as much about cars as you guys."

Natsu smirked, "Gear-heads, remember? You'll get used to it."

"What we're talking about is an the engines you can't usually get for a Charger." Wendy told her, "We'll have to modify most of it to fit into the car, but the idea is to get a real racing engine to replace a standard V8."

"Meaning…?" Lucy asked.

"An R6 is a NASCAR engine, Lucy." Natsu said, "We're talking 800 horsepower. That sucker'll run, especially after we finish customizing this beast."

Wendy nodded and smiled, "I've never worked on something like that. Should be interesting. We'll have to rig the body so it can deal with all that torque…or else you won't be able to take the turns without losing your speed."

"So a hydraulic system for the wheels?" he asked.

"Well, I don't have the tools to construct a magnetic suspension rig, so yeah." Wendy told him.

"You two are losing me again." Lucy laughed awkwardly.

Natsu put a hand on her shoulder and grinned, "Don't worry about it, Lucy. We'll teach you once we get what we need. So, let's go huntin'."

Wendy picked up a wrench from a nearby bench and flipped it with a wink, "Hurry back, so I can do what I do best. I haven't felt this excited about building a car in years."

**/\/\/\/\/\**

Lucy drove them to Gajeel's place next, where Black Steel was working on his Barracuda with Sue. Boze was having a drink nearby.

"Hey, Gajeel!" Natsu called.

Gajeel glanced back and replied, "What's up, punk?"

"Wanna do some shopping, later?" he asked.

Sue and Boze stared at him like he'd gone crazy.

But Gajeel seemed to get it. He smirked, "What are we looking for?"

"An R6 for a little project of mine." Natsu grinned.

"Gee-hee…alright. I'm down." Black Steel nodded, then returned to his work.

Lucy glanced at Natsu with a questioning look, "Shopping?"

"You'll see." he chuckled, "Wanna get something to eat before we pick up my Corvette?"

Lucy smiled, "Sure!"

**/**

They stopped at a local Sonic and bought two slushies and some chicken. While they ate, Lucy gave Natsu a curious look, "So, what did you mean by shopping?"

"What are you talking about? I meant shopping." Natsu said.

"No offense, but I find it kind of hard to picture you and Gajeel going out just to buy something in a store." Lucy pointed out.

Natsu laughed, then shook his head, "Yeah, that won't ever happen. No, our definition of shopping is probably different than yours."

"Why do I get the feeling this'll involve you and Gajeel ripping someone off?" Lucy asked.

He grinned, "You catch on fast, Lucy. I might make a gear-head out of you, yet."

Lucy giggled, but then frowned, "Hold on, where are you two gonna get a NASCAR engine?"

"Lucy, we have our sources, let's leave it at that." Natsu chuckled, "We'll probably be bringing Sue and Boze along, too…you wanna come?"

She smiled, "Of course, but what are we going to do?"

Natsu popped a piece of chicken into his mouth and grinned, "You'll see."

Lucy pouted a little, "Come on! Tell me~"

"Nope. You'll have to wait until later." he chuckled teasingly.

Her cheek puffed up, "Meanie."

To which Natsu laughed.

**/\/\/\/\/\**

By the time they went home and got Natsu's Corvette back from Erza, the sun was already setting.

Natsu lifted the hood of his car and sighed once he discovered the new GPS installment. He shook his head, "I can't believe they put junk like that in my car."

Erza patted his shoulder, "Well, we don't care if you think it's junk, because you're driving it anyway. Live with it, Natsu."

"If I get to keep this Corvette after we finish the job, you're yanking that shit out." Natsu told her as he climbed into the driver's seat.

Erza cast a sideways glance at Lucy, "Good luck with him."

Lucy shrugged, "He's okay."

"Lucy, come on! We'll be late!" Natsu called.

"Gotta go. Bye!" Lucy hurried to the passenger side and got in, then Natsu reversed the Corvette and sped away from the mansion.

**/**

After meeting up with Gajeel and his crew, they headed to an older corner of L.A. and ended up at a worn-down parking garage.

Lucy cast a confused look at Natsu, "I thought we were getting a NASCAR engine?"

"We are. Just wait." he smirked.

They were stopped at the entrance by a dark-skinned guy in a black suit.

Natsu glanced out the window, "Hey, Ren!"

The man's eyes widened in surprise, then he grinned, "Well, look who's back in town! Oh, the guys are in for a shocker, tonight. You still racing?"

"You know I am. Actually, I'm looking for an R6 engine. Does Hibiki still have that old Challenger?" Natsu asked.

"He sure does. Beats my ass in it from time to time, too." Ren told him, but then he saw Lucy and smiled charmingly, "And who's this beautiful lady?"

Lucy offered a return smiled, "I'm Lucy."

Ren bowed to her, "Well, gorgeous, can I interest you in dinner later? Or perhaps-"

Behind them, Gajeel suddenly blared his horn and yelled, "HEY, PRETTY BOY! LET US THROUGH, ALREADY!"

The man rolled his eyes and muttered in exasperation, "Metal prick."

Natsu laughed at Ren's irritation before he drove into the parking garage and headed up to the second floor. Lucy's mouth fell open slightly at the sight she was met with.

Cars were parked in every available space, most with their hoods propped up so the masses of people walking around could check out the engine systems. There was a DJ in the back playing some kind of techno music while a group of girls in skimpy outfits danced.

Natsu glanced at Lucy and grinned at her look of astonishment, "Surprised?"

"What is this place?" she asked.

"This is where we started racing back when we were kids." he told her, "I guess Phantom hasn't found it yet, otherwise these guys would've skipped town. Gajeel must be keeping quiet about it so Jose can't get another source of profit."

Lucy's awe was stopped by the sight of another guy in a black suit making out with two girls back and forth. She puffed up her cheek in offense, "What kind of profit do you mean? Money, or all of these girls?"

Natsu also spotted the man and rolled his eyes, "Those are just the Trimens. Three guys who wear fancy clothes and love to love. The first one we met back there was Ren, and that guy over there is Eve." He nodded to the guy in the threesome, then looked at Lucy, "The third guy is Hibiki, and he's probably the most womanizing of them."

"That's nice to know." she muttered, still rather annoyed by the lack of decency. Lucy, being a girl raised with a proper lifestyle, was unused to such skimpy behavior.

He smirked, "You'll get used to this eventually. It doesn't take long."

Lucy stared at him, "Wait…don't tell me you used to do that?"

Natsu chuckled, "Nah, I got in a relationship almost right after I really started looking at the girls here…Gajeel hit it up a lot, though. Gray got a few shots in, too. And Loke…whew! That man almost single-handedly started World War 3 with the Trimens, yeesh…"

She watched him suspiciously, "You're not in a relationship right now…Does that mean you're gonna go all playboy out here while Phantom's not watching?"

"Don't tempt me." Natsu muttered as he slowed the Corvette slightly to look out his window at a pretty girl wearing a very short purple skirt. She had her back to them and was half-bent over to clean a car engine.

"Uh-huh. Very funny. Keep driving before I smack you." Lucy fumed.

Natsu laughed at her indignation, but kept moving.

**/**

Eventually, they found a spare parking spot and took it. Natsu climbed out and looked around, noting Gajeel park not far away, but he was looking for someone else in the crowd he could recognize.

After a bit, he found one.

"Yo, Sherry!" he called.

A teenage girl in a black tank-top and a short purple skirt turned around at his call. She had on a hairband with cat ears and fishnet tights that stopped just over her knees. Lucy recognized her as the same girl Natsu had been checking out on the way up.

Her jaw dropped at the sight of them, "Ohmigod! _Natsu?!_"

"In the flesh. Gee-hee." Gajeel said as he walked up to them.

Sherry spun back around and shouted, "Hey, Lyon! Come see this!"

A man with light grey, spiky hair in a black leather jacket and ripped blue jeans walked over with a confused look, but stopped dead when he saw who Sherry was pointing at. A huge grin spread across his face, "You son of a bitch! You came back!"

"Damn straight I did." Natsu laughed and bumped fists with him. He gestured from Lyon to Lucy, "Alright, so Lyon is Gray's older cousin, and he basically runs things around this joint. Lyon, this is Lucy, she's just learning how to street race, but she's pretty cool."

"That doesn't seem to be the only thing pretty about her." Lyon said with a grin, looking Lucy up and down a few times to appraise her.

Lucy self-consciously shifted a little closer to Natsu, hoping he would keep those prying eyes off of her.

Luckily, Natsu had her back, "Hey, easy, man. I said she was new; don't go taking advantage of her."

"Uh-huh." Lyon chewed his lip thoughtfully, "So, are you two…?" He moved his finger back and forth between Natsu and Lucy.

Natsu shrugged, "Thinking about it. You know how it is."

"You _so _wouldn't say that if I were wearing something like Sherry." Lucy puffed up her cheek in irritation.

Sherry's smile widened, "We can do something about that. Wanna come with me for a bit, Lucy? Lyon can keep Natsu under control for twenty minutes while we find you something to wear."

Without waiting for her answer, Sherry grabbed Lucy's hand and dragged her away. Sue went with them, while Boze headed off to check out some of the cars.

Natsu watched the girls walk off and shivered a little, "They better not come back in matching outfits."

"Why? Dude, if you're already getting turned on, then you _need _to get laid." Lyon smirked.

"I'll kick your ass if you tell them that." Natsu decided. _It's not untrue though…_

Lyon crossed his arms, "Alright, so what's up? You didn't just come back to check out the girls, didja?"

Gajeel shrugged, "I might have a go. They really went all out tonight, man…Ooh, damn, look at that one!"

A girl with long, blonde hair in a pink blouse walked by. The dress stopped at the middle of her thighs, but it didn't seem like she was wearing anything else. _Anything. _

Black Steel raised an approving eyebrow and whistled, "That's some sexy stuff..."

Lyon shook his head, "Uh-uh, not for your eyes, bro. That's Jenny; She's Hibiki's girl. If you're gonna hit on her, you better get the skills to take Hibiki down."

"Pff. Get the skills?" Gajeel scoffed, "Please. I'll have that pretty boy shaking in his fancy boots."

"Some things never change, huh?" Lyon muttered, then dragged them off before Gajeel could make a move on the hot blonde, "Come on, you guys. Let's go find the others and get caught up."

**/**

"H-hey…"

Lucy crossed her arms over her chest in embarrassment, "I-isn't this like, you know…too revealing?"

After being kidnapped to an empty room, Lucy had been subject to several extra outfits Sherry had brought along with her. Eventually, Sherry and Sue had chosen one for her they decided was perfect.

So, now Lucy wore a strapless pink tank top that stopped halfway down her stomach and exposed the tops of her breasts, and a short, wavy black skirt which didn't even reach the middle of her thighs. A set of black boots and thigh-high black socks, as well as a pair of fingerless dark blue gloves finished the outfit.

Sherry clapped her hands together, "Sexy stuff! The guys are just gonna want to eat you up!"

Lucy reddened considerably, "I-I've never worn stuff like this before…"

"You look great." Sue complimented, "Now you really look like a street racing chick. Natsu won't even know what hit him."

"Do you think so…?" Lucy wasn't sure. She felt scandalous.

Sherry threw an arm around her new friend, "Lucy, let me tell you something about boys. The first thing they want in a girl is for her to look beautiful. Eye candy helps speed up that process, especially with street racers like these guys. Just trust me."

**/**

"Wow." Lyon remarked after Natsu finished filling him in on what he'd been up to the last two years. He shook his head, "That sounds like it totally sucked."

"It wasn't all bad. I learned how to talk shit in spanish." Natsu smirked.

Lyon chuckled, "Well, that's something. But damn, man. I was out in the UK when all this went down, remember? All I heard about was the crash and how you wrecked the cops that night. That was like a week after it happened when I finally got back in town. It was a helluva mess."

"It really was." Gajeel agreed.

"Yeah, Mira told me about that." Natsu muttered.

"Hey, guys!"

Natsu, Gajeel, and Lyon glanced in the direction of the call and stared.

Natsu's mouth fell open slightly, _"Lucy?"_

What did he think of the sexy new outfit, along with the shy, but adorably cute expression on her face? Lucy looked like an angel that fell out of the sky.

"Damn..." Gajeel muttered in astonishment.

Even Lyon was impressed, "That's…wow."

Lucy put her hands behind her and looked over the outfit with a red tint to her cheeks, "D-does it look good?"

"Lucy, you're a knockout…" Natsu managed.

Sherry grinned and patted Lucy's shoulder, "I told you so."

Lucy blushed and avoided Natsu's gaze.

"Well, what have we here?"

A tall guy in a black suit walked over with Ren and Eve behind him, an approving smile on his face.

Lyon rolled his eyes, "Hibiki. Late as usual. So, did you finish fucking around with those girls you picked up?"

"Who is this beautiful young lady?" Hibiki asked, ignoring Lyon and focusing on Lucy.

Sherry walked over to Ren and wound her arm through his with a smile, "This is Lucy, guys. And guess what? Natsu's back!"

"No one cares about that." Hibiki dismissed, "Natsu ran out two years ago. He doesn't run these streets anymore. I'm more interested in just who this gorgeous girl is."

Natsu didn't like that one bit, "That's a hell of a way to treat your old friend."

"Rival." Hibiki corrected, "So, young lady, may I ask if you have any plans for later?"

"Actually, she does." Natsu flashed a glare at Hibiki before Lucy could open her mouth to reply, "And they don't involve you."

Hibiki smirked, "Really? It's Lucy, right? Are you sure you want to hang out with this guy? He couldn't even protect his girlfriend from two years ago, you know? Just forget Natsu. It isn't a good idea to be around him."

Lucy had met guys like this. Guys who had it all and just wanted more. She didn't like them.

"At least he doesn't hit on every girl with a heartbeat." Lucy muttered.

Gajeel and Lyon laughed, and Natsu grinned while Hibiki's eye twitched. Clearly, he wasn't used to being turned down.

"Are you sure about that?" Hibiki's voice might as well have been coated with honey, "A beautiful girl like you could do so much better than a street kid like him…Trust me, baby, you should reconsider."

"Don't call me that." Lucy snapped.

Hibiki walked up to her and brought up a hand to touch her cheek, but Lucy jerked away. He smiled regardless, "Don't be that way, honey…You'll can't get what I can offer from a punk like Natsu."

Lucy glared at him, "Natsu respects me. You clearly have no idea what that even means."

"OOHHH!" Gajeel and Lyon started cracking up at the insult.

Natsu walked over and got in Hibiki's face, "Back off. She doesn't want to hang out with you. Besides, we didn't come here to flirt. Do you still have a ride with an R6 engine?"

Hibiki smirked, "Of course. I could buy a dozen of those engines and still have plenty of money. Why?"

"I'll race you for it." Natsu challenged.

The playboy chuckled, "So, that's how it is. Well, then, if I win, then Miss Lucy has to spend a night with me."

Natsu glared at him, "So not happening."

Hibiki shrugged, "Then there's no race."

"Dude, come on, really?" Lyon arched an eyebrow, "Are you seriously getting your panties in a bunch 'cause one girl said no to you?"

"What I can't take is that the girl preferred a street kid over me." Hibiki muttered.

Natsu apparently had a lightbulb moment, because he suddenly got behind Lucy and wrapped his arms around her waist, smirking at Hibiki from over her shoulder, "There's no preference because she's already with _me_."

Lucy caught on to Natsu's game (Though she wished he meant it) and twisted her head slightly to kiss him, then glanced at the playboy, "Sorry, but I'm not interested in what you have to offer. I just came to watch my boyfriend race."

"Well, I can't turn down the request of a gorgeous girl like you." Hibiki cood, who apparently could not take a hint, or just didn't care. He looked at Natsu with barely disguised dislike, "So, what do I get if I win?"

"How about you don't get an ass kicking for being such a prick." Natsu snapped, still irritated by how Hibiki had treated him and Lucy.

Ren stepped forward and got between the clashing guys, "Alright, enough. You both race for pink slips, got it? Car for car."

Hibiki chuckled, "What would I do with whatever broken piece of crap he's got now?"

"You callin' my Z06 a broken piece of crap?" Natsu smirked.

Eve whistled, "A Corvette? You really traded up, Natsu."

"Yeah, he did." Gajeel cut in, "And lemme tell ya, he's still got the skills."

"He'd better, or he won't stand a chance." Hibiki said confidently, then turned and walked off to get his car.

Lucy glanced at Natsu and whispered, "Leave that guy in the dust."

"My pleasure." Natsu smirked.


End file.
